UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 
AT   LOS  ANGELES 


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NEW  GRANADA: 


TWENTY  MONTHS  IN  THE  ANDES. 


BY    ISAAC    F.    HOLTON,    M.A., 

PROFESSOR  OF   CHEMISTRY   AND   NATURAL   HISTORY   IN    MIDDLEBURY   COLLEGE. 


WITH    MAPS     AND     ILLUSTRATIONS. 


NEW    YORK: 

HARPER    it    BROTHERS,    PUBLISHERS, 

FRANKLIN     SQUARE. 

1857. 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  fifty-six,  by 

HARPER  &  BROTHERS, 

in  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  Southern  District 
of  New  York. 


PREFACE, 


THE  botanist  can  not  study  the  productions  of  the  torrid  zone 
without  a  strong  desire  to  see  with  his  own  eyes  the  regions  of 
-i  perpetual  summer.  This  desire  grows  from  year  to  year,  but 

each  succeeding  year  generally  binds  him  closer  to  local  duties 
and  his  home.  In  the  case  of  the  author,  this  centripetal  force 
had  not  developed  itself  in  due  proportion  to  its  antagonist,  and 
a  visit  to  the  tropic  world  was  the  result. 

His  attention  was  directed  more  particularly  to  New  Granada 
by  the  scantiness  of  botanical  information  on  a  region  so  pro- 
fusely rich  in  plants.  Not  even  a  catalogue  of  a  collector  had 
appeared  since  the  results  of  Humboldt's  visit,  at  the  begin- 
^>  ning  of  this  century,  were  given  to  the  world. 

Nor  were  the  sources  of  general  information  on  that  republic 
^  much  more  copious  or  recent.  Our  libraries  were  found  to  con- 
tain several  works  on  Colombia,  written  during  that  terrible 
struggle  with  the  mother  country  which  terminated,  or,  rather, 
^  took  on  a  chronic  form  in  1825,  but  not  a  volume  was  to  be 
S  found  which  had  been  written  since  New  Granada  had  taken  her 
place  among  the  nations.  No  answer  could  be  found  to  the  in- 
quiry what  effect  thirty  years  of  liberty  had  produced  on  a  land 
that  had  been  till  that  time  sealed  up  from  all  the  world  by  Span- 
ish despotism.  This  void  in  our  geographical  information  was 
the  determining  cause  of  the  journey  narrated  in  this  volume. 

Thus  my  task  was  commenced  with  a  more  correct  estimate 
of  the  need  of  the  undertaking  than  of  its  difficulty.  A  want 
of  reliable  facts  began  to  produce  its  inconveniences  even  before 
leaving  our  shores,  impeded  the  journey  at  every  stage,  and  aft- 
erward still  more  embarrassed  the  composition  of  the  narrative. 
The  observations  of  earlier  travelers,  who  resided  in  the  country 
for  some  special  object,  or  hurried  through  it  ignorant  alike  of 


vi  PREFACE. 

the  genius  and  the  language  of  the  people,  were  so  frequently 
erroneous,  that  I  did,  perhaps,  not  often  enough  distrust  my 
own  conclusions  when  different  from  theirs.  In  addition  to 
these  old  works,  accident  has  lately  thrown  in  my  way  a  small 
book,  entitled  "  Bogota  in  1836-7.  By  J.  Steuart.  Printed 
for  the  author  by  Harper  &  Brothers,  82  Cliff  Street,  1838." 
I  had  heard  of  this  book  in  South  America,  but  all  my  search 
for  it  in  libraries  and  book-stores  had  been  in  vain.  I  know  of 
no  other  copy  in  the  United  States. 

No  Spanish-American  nation  has  furnished  a  larger  propor- 
tion of  authors  than  New  Granada ;  still,  their  works  are  neither 
numerous  nor  easy  of  access.  The  "  Semanario  de  la  Nueva 
Granada, "published  in  Bogota  in  1810,  various  scientific  papers 
by  Boussaingault,  and  a  pamphlet  by  President  T.  C.  Mosquera, 
have  been  freely  used.  On  the  latter  I  have  relied  for  the  names 
of  many  animals  and  some  plants.  Plaza's  history  has  been 
carefully  examined,  and  Acosta's  sometimes  referred  to.  Pub- 
lic documents  were  supplied  with  exceeding  kindness  by  those 
officers  who  had  them  in  their  power,  both  at  Bogota  and  else- 
where. It  is  to  be  regretted  that  neither  the  Granadan  legation 
in  the  United  States,  nor  the  consulate  at  New  York,  were  able 
to  add  any  thing  to  these  stores  collected  abroad. 

Many  individuals  have  kindly  aided  in  promoting  the  accu- 
racy of  the  work,  whose  favors,  though  gratefully  remembered, 
can  not  be  enumerated  here.  To  no  North  American  does  it 
owe  more  than  to  that  gentleman,  merchant,  and  scholar,  Alex- 
ander I.  Cotheal.  Senor  Julio  Arboleda  was  never  applied  to 
in  vain.  Senor  Escipion  Garcia-Herreros  contributed  some  val- 
uable and  elaborate  observations  on  civil  law,  and  a  compen- 
dium of  the  history  of  the  last  attempt  at  revolution,  both  of 
which  deserved  a  better  fate  than  to  be  reduced  to  such  mere  ab- 
stracts as  alone  could  find  room  in  a  volume  of  travels. 

But  to  no  one  individual,  nor,  indeed,  to  all  others,  does  the 
work  owe  so  much  as  to  Senor  Rafael  Pombo,  secretary  of  the 
Granadan  legation.  And  this  zeal  was  owing,  not  to  a  friend- 
ship to  the  author,  to  whom  he  was  a  stranger  when  his  aid  was 
first  sought,  but  to  a  noble  love  for  his  country.  May  that 
country  thank  and  reward  him ;  for  his  faithfulness,  accuracy, 
promptness,  and  zeal  transcend  all  mere  thanks  of  mine. 


PREFACE.  vii 

It  was  a  calamity  that  the  book  was  put  in  type  at  a  time 
when  Senor  Pombo  was  absent  from  the  country.  The  author's 
distance  from  the  printers  also  tended  to  increase  the  number  of 
verbal  errors,  which,  notwithstanding  an  almost  marvelous  accu- 
racy on  their  part,  will  be  noticed  by  the  Spanish  scholar.  As 
most  of  these  occur  rightly  spelled  in  the  Appendix,  it  is  hoped 
that  they  will  not  sensibly  impair  the  utility  of  the  book.  The 
translation  of  the  phrase  Dominus  vobiscum,  the  expressions 
Que  entrenpara  dentro,  and  Por  siempre,  are  perhaps  the  most 
important  not  thus  corrected. 

But  there  is  another  class  of  errors  which  no  proof-reader  can 
correct,  and  the  number  of  which  no  one  will  ever  know.  So 
many  are  the  motives  for  misleading  the  traveler — so  many  the 
errors  that,  once  set  down  for  truth,  are  never  re-examined — 
that  it  can  not  be  possible  that  this  work  shall  be  exempt  from 
them.  The  indulgent  reader  will  pardon  them. 

The  author  claims  of  the  publishers  the  right  to  make  one 
more  acknowledgment  of  obligation,  and  that  is  to  themselves. 
The  liberality  with  which  they  have  acceded  to  every  wish  of 
his,  involving  outlays  far  beyond  what  was  at  first  intended,  is 
one  of  the  most  pleasing  circumstances  in  the  retrospect  of  the 
long  and  unremitted  toil  this  day  concluded.  And  if  succeed- 
ing travelers  shall  find  in  the  book  that  aid  which  the  writer 
sought  in  vain,  and  the  philanthropist  shall  feel  his  best  sympa- 
thies aroused  for  one  of  the  most  liberal  and  free  nations  on  the 
face  of  the  globe,  that  toil  will  not  be  unrewarded. 

Middlebury  College,  October  15th,  1856. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTEE   I. 

INTRODUCTORY. 

A  tropical  Scene. — Position  of  Vijes. — Valley  of  the  Magdalena. — The  Cauca. 
— Seclusion  of  its  Valley. — Aim  of  the  Work. — Origin  of  Character. — Influ- 
ence of  Latitude  on  Value  of  Time. — Effect  of  Altitude  on  Temperature. — 
Religious  Monopoly. — Ancestry. — Language. — Plan  of  the  Work Page  17 

CHAPTER  H. 

SABANILLA. 

First  View  of  New  Granada. — Perpetual  Snow. — Rio  Hacha. — Goajiro  Indians. 
— Santa  Marta. — Mouth  of  the  Magdalena. — A  Native. — Port  Officers,  and  the 
Passenger  without  a  Passport. — Sabanilla  School. — Collecting  the  Revenue. — 
Rotation  in  Office .". 25 

CHAPTER  III. 

BARRANQTTILLA. 

Ride  to  Barranquilla. — First  Spot  in  the  Tropics. — Lizards. — Mail-carrier. — 
Town. — Government  of  New  Granada. — Governor. — Prison. — Church. — Boat 
Expedition. — Bongo. — Poling. — A  Night  with  Bogas  and  Musquitoes. — CaiTa 
de  la  Pina. — Harbor  of  Sabanilla 34 

CHAPTER  IV. 

CARTAGENA. 

Entrance  to  a  splendid  Harbor. — A  walled  City  and  a  finished  City. — Consul 
Sanchez. — ?>Iule  Travel. — La  Popa. — Turbaco. — Arjona. — The  Dique. — Ma- 
hates. — Il-nv  the  Duke  did  a  Yankee. — Calamar. — A  Dance 42 

CHAPTER  V. 

THE    MAGDALENA    STEAMER. 

I  'team  on  the  Magdalena. — The  Barranquilla. — Mouth  of  the  Cauca. — Lady  Pas- 
senger left. — Houses. — Bogas  and  their  Women. — Banco  and  its  Ants. — Its 
Priest  as  industrious. — Puerto  Nacional. — Fertility  of  Ichthyophagi. — San  Pa- 
blo.— An  opening  for  Practice. — Water-drinking  and  Drinking-water. — Geog- 
raphy.— Geographer  lost  in  the  Woods. — On  a  Sand-bar 54 

CHAPTER  VI. 

THE   CHAMPAN. 

Bogas. — Farewell  to  Steam. — Trying  to  be  "  down  sick." — The  Hammock.— 
Our  Prison. — On  short  Allowance. — Plank-making. — Platanal. — Chocolate. — 
Buena  Vista. — On  Shore 78 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

HONDA   AND   GCADCA8. 

Bodega  and  Bodeguero. — Crusoe's  Long-boat. — Men  of  Burden. — Wonderful 
Bridge.  —  Municipal  Suicide.  —  Salt.  —  A  universal  Swim.  —  A  petrified 
City. — Pescaderias. — Passive  Obedience  to  Mules. — Rural  Breakfast. — Fare- 
well to  the  River. — Mr.  Win.  Gooding. — Col.  Joaquin  Acosta. — The  Guadua. 
— Sunday  Market. — Mass. — Cemetery. — Fountain. — Salutations Page  91 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

PLAIN   OF   BOGOTA. 

The  Negress  Francisca. — Ups  and  Downs. — Venta  at  Cuni,  and  Sausage  there. 
— Villeta. — Great  Tertulia  and  hard  Lodgings. — Excelsior. — The  Plain. — 
Traditions. — Fences. — The  Orejon. — Battle-fields. — Market-people. — Fonti- 
bon. — Entrance  to  Bogota 116 

CHAPTER  EX. 

POSADA   AT   BOGOTA. 

A  House  at  Bogota. — Servants. — Abnormal  Cookery. — A  Visit  to  the  Kitchen. 
— A  Discovery.  —  Sickness. — Rooms  and  Furniture. — Food  and  Fruits. — A 
Love  Affair 137 

CHAPTER  X. 

BOGOTA. 

Streets  of  Bogota. — Plan  of  the  City. — Plazas. — Public  Buildings. — Library. — 
Museum. —  Observatory. — Preparations  for  Execution. — Cemeteries. — Plaza 
de  los  Martires. — Mode  of  Execution. — Victims  of  Morillo 152 

CHAPTER  XI. 

FOREIGNERS   IN   BOGOTA. 

Legations  in  Bogotr.. — Our  System. — Mr.  King. — Mr.  Greeu. — Mr.  Benntt. — 
British  and  French  Legations. — Venezuelan. — Legate  of  the  Pope. — Spanish 
Obstinacy. — Granadan  Courtesy. — Naturalization 165 

CHAPTER  XII. 

THE    BOGOTANOS. 

Houses. — Smoking. — Dinner  at  the  Palace. — Coreographic  Commission. — Low- 
er Orders. — Market  and  Marketing. — Lesson  in  Spanish 170 

CHAPTER  Xm. 

RELIGION   AND   CHURCHES    OF    BOGOTA. 

Doctrines  of  the  Romish  Church. — Miraculous  Birth  of  Christ. — Baptism. — Re- 
lation of  God-parents. — Confirmation. — Communion. — Rosary  and  Crown. — 
Family  Worship. — Vespers. — Neglect  of  Religion 180 

CHAPTER  XTV. 

CHURCHES   OF   BOGOTA. 

The  City  of  Churches. — Clocks. — Advocaciones. — Les  Nieves. — Bells. — Ara. — 
Nude  Saints. — La  Tercera. — Flagellation. — San  Francisco. — Santo  Domingc. 
— Clerical  Dress. — Cathedral. — San  Agustin. — Nunneries 18"> 


CONTENTS.  xi 

CHAPTER  XV. 

PARAMO    AND    POLITICS. 

Dancing. — Mules,  Bulls,  and  Horses. — Quesada,  the  Conqueror. — Bolivar  and 
Santander. — Colombia  :  its  Rise,  History,  and  Disruption. — One  or  two  Re- 
bellions.— Heroic  and  frail  Woman. — Hail Page  200 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

MONTSERRATE    AND   THE    BOQUERON. 

Aqueduct. — Bathing  Excursion. — Houses  not  Homes. — Quinta  of  Bolivar. — Hill 
Difficulty,  and  a  "Way  of  doubtful  Holiness.  —  Chapel.  —  Perpetual  Snow.  — 
Rome  nice  Plants.  —  A  cold  Region  and  its  Inhabitants.  —  The  Boqueron.  — 
Leneras. — Scarcity  of  Wood 211 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

THE    PRISON,  THE    HOSPITAL,  THE    GRAVE. 

Guadalupe. — Discomfited  Saint. — Boqueron  and  bathing  Girls. — Miracle-work- 
ing Image. — Fuel-girl  and  Babe. — Powder-mill  and  Magazine. — Soldiers. — 
Cemeteries.  —  Day  of  Mourning.  —  Potter's-fields.  —  Gallinazo. — 'Hospital.  — 
Doctors  and  Apothecaries. — Provincial  Prison 222 

CHAPTER  XVm. 

THE    VALLET    OF    THE    ORINOCO. 

Hydrography. — Paramo  of  Choachi. — Cordillera  of  Bogota  and  the  Provinces  on 
its  Summit.  —  Eastern  Wilderness. — Thermal  Springs.  —  Indian  Reserves. — 
Fortunate  Priest. — His  cunning  Penitent. — Cordage  Plant. — Laguna  Grande. 
— Hid  Treasures. — Murder  of  the  Chibcha  King. — Senor  Quevedo. — Bolivar. 
—  Joaquin  Mosquera. —  Rafael  Urdaneta. —  Domingo  Caicedo. —  Jose  Maria 
Obando. — Francisco  de  Paulo  Santander. — Six  Administrations  and  three  Re- 
bellions.— Murder  and  Mystery. — Sucre,  Sarda,  and  Mariano  Paris. — Une. — 
Paramo  of  Cruz  Verde. — Rare  Plants 235 

CHAPTER  XLX. 

CONGRESS,   CONSTITUTIONS,   INSTITUTIONS,  AND   WEATHER. 

Congress  Halls. — Opening  of  Congress. — Audience. — Constitutions  of  1843  and 
1853. — Defect  of  the  latter. — Finances. — Descentralizacion. — Mint. — Mails. 
— Provincial  Schools. — Colegio   Militar. — Observatory. — Caldas. — Hoyo  del   " 
Aire.  —  Schools  and  Studies.  —  Manufactories.  —  The  dependent  Classes. — 
Weather,  Temperature,  etc.,  of  Bogota... 256 

CHAPTER  XX. 

THE    FALLS    OF    TEQUENDAMA. 

Leaving  Bogota.  —  Mule-hunting.  —  Soacha.  —  Agriculture  at  Tequendama. — 
Course  of  the  River. — Description  of  the  Falls. — Comparison  of  Cataracts. — 
Photographic  View. — Mist  Theory. — Tree-ferns. — Haciendas  of  Cincha  and 
Tequendama. — Saw-mill  and  Quinine  Factory. — Sabbath  Reading 272 


xii  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

BALLS   AND   BULLS. 

Cibate. — Priest  traveling. — Spinning. — Yoking  Cattle. — President  traveling. — 
Perpetual  Rain. — Riding  alaTurque  advocated. — Carguero  and  Babe. — Sleep- 
ing in  slipper}'  Places. — Unnecessary  Ascent. —  Balls. —  Bull-feasts. —  Open 
Prison. — A  Walk. — Rich  Gardens,  unfortunate  Statesman,  and  frail  Poetess. 
— Snails'  Eggs. — Masquerades  and  April-fools. — Gambling. — Dr.  Blagborne'- 
Family.— Little  Alice Page  287 

CHAPTER  XXH. 

THE    BRIDGE    OF    PANDI. 

Hacienda  del  Retire. — Slow  Horse. — Probable  Origin  of  the  Bridge. — Humble 
Posada. — Bad  Priests. — The  Bridge. — Cemetery  of  Pandi. — District  Prison. 
— A  warm  Walk  and  cold  Ride. — Dull  Horse  and  fragile  Sticks. — Problem 
of  Achilles  and  the  Tortoise  exemplified 308 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 

IBAGUE. 

Sngar-mill. — Boqueron. — Ferry  over  the  Suma  Paz. — Melgar. — Immersion. — 
Custard  by  a  Chemist. — A  Ford. — Inquisitiveness. — Equivocal  Generation. — 
Crossing  the  Magdalena. — Strait  and  narrow  Way. — Espinal. — Live  Snake. — 
Late  Breakfast. — Conscience  at  a  Ferry. — Ibague. — Schools,  Books,  and  Stud- 
ies.— The  Priest  and  the  Cock-pit. — Extreme  Unction,  Coffin,  and  Grave. — 
Provincial  Paper.  —  Blockhead  Legislators. — Taxation. — Legislative  Asse 
nearer  Home 314 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

THE  BACK  TRACK. 

A  Crash  Towel. — Excellent  Family. — A  Granadan  Ghost. — Piedras. — How  to  ex- 
tinguish a  Cigar. — Rio  Seco. — Drowning  in  Dry  River. — Neme  and  Bitumen. — 
Sulphur  Water  and  something  stronger. — Granadan  drunk  and  noisy. — Tocai- 
ma. — Sky-roofed  Prison. — Fall  of  Horses. — Juntas  de  Apulo. — Muddy  Rivers 
and  muddy  Roads.  —  Anapoima. — Mesa.  —  Road  round  a  Hill.  —  Presidio. — 
Hospital. — Surveillance. — Volcan. — School  Examination. — Tertulia. — Expe- 
dition to  Tequendama. — The  Laggards. — Tena. — A  cool  Drink. — A  Fast. — 
Affectionate  Reception 338 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

CROSSING   THE   QUINDIO   MOUNTAINS. 

The  Party. — Early  Start. — Late  Dinner. — Sulphur  Mine. — Hot  Springs. — The 
Presidio. — An  Accident. — Cold  Night. — I  love  my  Neighbor,  and  she  loves 
hers.  —  Twice-told  Tale.  —  Boquia.  —  Balsa.  — Ranchos.  —  Cartago. — Ball.  — 
Prisoner  set  free. — The  Drama  in  open  Air 354 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 

A   CAUCAN   FAMILY. 

Scheme  for  Revealing  and  Concealing. — Introduction  to  the  Family. — House  in 
Cartago. — Bad  Ear-ache  and  Ball. — How  to  go  to  Bed. — Water-boys. — Fleas. 


CONTENTS.  xiii 

—  Horsemanship.  —  Using  a  Hacienda  as  an  Inn.  —  A  Peasant  Liar.  —  La  Ca- 
bana. —  An  ugly  Hole  in  the  Dark  ............................................  Page  379 

CHAPTER  XXVH. 

ROLDANILLO    AND    LAW. 

A  Gentleman  Liar.  —  Pleasant  Family.  —  A  nice  Swim.  —  Over  the  Cauca.  —  Rich 
Family  and  few  Comforts.  —  La  Mona.  —  Sabbath  Eve.  —  Roldanillo.  —  Good 
Priest.  —  Select  School.  —  Church  Organ.  —  Law.  —  Superiority  of  our  System.  — 
Incredulous  Priest.  —  Civil  Suits.  —  A  queer  Fruit.  —  Swimming  the  Cauca..  393 

CHAPTER  XXVHI. 

GRAZIER    LIFE. 

Libraida.  —  Priest.  —  Partial  Hospitality.  —  Impediment  to  Church-going.  —  Noon- 
day-ball. —  The  Priest's  Partner.  —  Utility  of  Hurrahs.  —  Dinner.  —  Duck- 
pulling.  —  Beheading  Cocks.  —  A  Spring.  —  A  Ride  with  Company.  —  La 
Paila.  —  Mortmain  and  ecclesiastical  Incumbrances.  —  Herding.  —  The  Lazo. 

—  Colt-breaking.  —  Breeding  of  Colts  and  Mules.  —  The  Bull-fishery.  —  Bull- 
driving  ......................................................................................  412 

,  CHAPTER  XXIX. 

GRAZIER    SPORTS. 

Cara-perro  and  Grass-climbing.  —  Virgin  Forest.  —  Manifest  Destiny.—  Cienega 
de  Burro.  —  A  Burial.  —  Rogacion.  —  Niguas  in  Church.  —  Neglect  of  the  Sick. 

—  Rejoicing  over  the  Dead.  —  Distilling.  —  Election.  —  What  is  in  a  Name?  — 
San  Juan.  —  Bride's  Dress.  —  A  Swim.  —  Murillo.  —  Overo.  —  Buga-la-Grande.  — 
Woods  in  the  Night.  —  Advantage  of  a  Guide  ....................................  434 


CHAPTER 

THE    GRAZIER    AT    HOME. 

House-building  of  Guadua,  Mud,  and  Thatch.  —  Plan  of  House.  —  Servants.  —  Ab- 
lutions. —  Breakfast.  —  The  Dairy.  —  Dinner.  —  A  Sabbath.  —  Baptism.  —  Mar- 
riage. —  Dinner  and  Ball.  —  Drinking  without  Drunkenness.  —  The  Bundi.  — 
Carrying  home  the  Girls.  —  A  Love  Affair.  —  Lay  Baptism.  —  Lying.  —  A  Week's 
Sickness.  —  Diet.  —  Monkey  and  Fowl.  —  Slaughter  of  Beef.  —  Turtles.  —  Agricul- 
ture. —  Prices.  —  Fertility  and  Poverty  :  Abundance  and  Hunger  ............  463 

CHAPTER  XXXI. 

THE  PASTURES  IN  THE  FOREST. 

Sudden  Start.  —  Wardrobe  for  the  Woods.  —  Plan  and  Company.  —  Barleycorn 
Boldness.  —  Night  in  Woods  and  Rain.  —  Departed  Spirits.  —  El  Chorro.  — 
Thermometer  broken.  —  A  Country  all  aslant.  —  Las  Playas.  —  Rancho  of 
Century-plant.  —  Substitute  for  Cords.  —  Jicaramata.  —  Guavito.  —  Threat  of 
Famine.  —  Sabbath-day's  Journey.  —  Routed  by  Hunger.  —  Snakes.  —  Treasure- 
hunting  .....................................................................................  489 

CHAPTER  XXXII. 

BUGA   AND    PALMIRA. 

lace-fields.  —  Mud-holes.  —  San  Pedro.  —  Buga.  —  Another  Horse  Story.  —  Zonza, 
t!.3  Beautiful.  —  Rio  Guaves.  —  Cerrito.  —  Church.  —  Care  of  Toes  in  School.  —  ' 


xiv  CONTENTS. 

Herran  Administration. — Constitution  of  1843. — Mosquera  Administration. — 
Water-mill  for  Cane. — Poor  rich  Family. — Irish  Gentleman  and  Granadan 
Wife. — How  to  spoil  a  Dinner. — Palmira. — Full  Jail. — Arithmetic. — A  Fast. 
'  — LL.D.'s  turned  Traders. — Cockroach  Story. — Mud,  Palins,  and  Indigenous 
Cacao. — Ferry Page  500 

CHAPTER  XXXIH. 

CALI  AND     VIJE8. 

Cali. — Church  built  of  old  Clothes. — A  Priest  making  Jews. — Rare  Flower  and 
miraculous  Image. — North  American  in  the  Hospital. — Schools. — Weaving. 
— Sounds  familiar. — Funeral. — Celebration  of  a  Party  Triumph. — Election  of 
Lopez. — A  Turn  northward. — A  fine  Bridge. — Yumbo. — Copper  cheaper  than 
Iron. — San  Marcos. — Route  to  the  Pacific. — Copper  Mine. — Gold  Mining  and 
Washing. — Comb  Manufactory.— Maladministration  in  the  Cauca. — Lands  in 
common. — Our  Priest :  his  Eloquence  and  Morals. — Visit  to  a  Hermit. — He- 
roic Eating. — Espinal. — Bolivia. — Pretty  Child. — Locating  Road. — Fence  of 
Cornstalks. — Railroad  to  the  Pacific. — Defective  Government. — Constitution 
of  1853. — Finances. — Protection  of  Vagabonds. — The  Granadinos  are  a  mor;  1 
People 515 

CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

SUPPLEMENTARY. 

Date  of  Crucifixion. — Lent. — The  purple  Curtain. — Blessing  Palm-leaves. — 
Ass  in  Church. — Pasos. — Nazarenos. — La  Reseiia. — White  Curtain  rent. — 
A  speaking  Trumpet. — Lamentations. — Monumentos. — Good  Friday. — Great 
Curtain  Rent  on  Saturday.  —  Paschal  Sunday.  —  Resurrection  Scene. —  Cui 
Bono? — A  Revolution  possible. — A  Murder. — Bochinche  of  Good  Friday. — 
Coup  d'etat. — Scenes  at  the  Palace. — Constitution  abolished. — Invasion  of 
Honda  and  Mesa. — American  Legation  stormed. — Battle  of  Cipaquira. — Af- 
fairs of  the  Cauca. — Surprise  at  Guaduas. — Scaling  Tequendama  with  Can- 
non.— Battle  of  Boza. — Storming  of  Bogota. — Fall  of  Melo. — The  next  Pres- 
ident...    543 


APPENDIX. 

Page 

I.  Glossary 56!) 

II.  Observations  on  the  Maps 673 

III.  Geographical  Index 574 

IV.  Alphabetical  List  of  Places  in  New  Granada 57") 

V.  Mail  Routes 584 

VI.  Geological  Section 585 

VII.  Altitudes,  Climates,  and  Productions 588 

VIII.  Itinerary 592 

IX.  Chronological  Table 593 

X.  Weights  and  Measures 595 

XI.  Analytical  Index 597 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE 

Map  of  New  Granada to  face  Title. 

Map  of  Climates to  face  page  587 

Fustic-cutter's  Family 59 

Ivory-nut  Plant 70 

The  Champan 80 

The  Orejon 132 

Indians  going  to  Market 136 

Casa  Claustrada 139 

Plan  of  Bogota 153 

Street  and  Cathedral  in  Bogota 156 

Foundling-wheel 163 

Habit  of  the  Jesuits 193 

Votive  Offerings 225 

Foot-soldier  and  Lancer 228 

Alpargate  or  Alpargata 236 

Riding  in  a  Sillon 240 

Bogotanos  at  Choachi 244 

Falls  of  Tequendama 281 

Priest  on  a  Journey 288 

Carguero  and  Babe 292 

The  Bull-feast 298 

Girl  with  Goitre 320 

Rubrica 326 

A  Coffin 329 

Inscriptions  on  Stones  near  Toche 362 

Silleros  in  the  Quindio 364 

Fashionable  Riding-dress 381 

Water-boy  at  Cartago 386 

The  Vaquero 426 

TheLazo 426 

Domestic  Still 448 

The  Grazier's  Home 464 

Church  at  Cerrito 506 

Geological  Section 587 

Chart  of  Altitudes  and  Productions 589 


ERRATA. 

Page  37,  line  3,  for  two,  read  twenty-two. 
Page  117,  line  37,  for  Losa,  reac/Loras. 
Page  273,  line  5,  add,  This  was  Boza. 
Page  529,  line  23,  for  Candelaria,  read  Caloto. 


GRANADA. 


CHAPTER  I. 

INTRODUCTORY. 

A  tropical  Scene.  —  Position  of  Vijes.  —  Valley  of  the  Magdalena.  —  The  Canca. 
—  Seclusion  of  its  Valley.  —  Aim  of  the  Work.  —  Origin  of  Character.  —  Influ- 
ence of  Latitude  on  Value  of  Time.  —  Effect  of  Altitude  on  Temperature.  — 
Religious  Monopoly.  —  Ancestry.  —  Language.  —  Plan  of  the  Work. 

I  HAVE  just  come  up  from  a  refreshing  dip  in  the  cool  mount- 
ain stream,  and  have  thrown  myself  leisurely  on  the  rude  and 
not  too  clean  bank  of  earth  and  stone  that  forms  a  seat  along 
the  front  of  the  lime-burner's  hut,  under  the  piazza. 

Here  sits  the  tenant  of  the  cottage  on  a  large  fragment  of 
rock,  destined  some  day  for  the  fire,  shaping  a  section  of  the 
stem  of  a  bush  into  a  wooden  spoon.  He  uses  for  this  the  uni- 
versal tool,  the  machete  —  a  knife  about  twenty  inches  long,  that 
the  peasant  rarely  fails  to  have  in  a  sheath  belted  to  his  waist. 

His  little  girl  has  slipped  on  her  camisa,  perhaps  the  only 
garment  that  she  possesses,  in  honor  of  my  coming.  The  little 
monkey  has  hardly  improved  her  appearance  by  the  operation  ; 
for  the  garment,  though  not  so  black  as  her  skin,  is  infinitely 
inferior  to  it  in  cleanliness.  She  is  doing  as  her  father  does, 
and  has  taken  a  large  piece  of  wood,  and  is  busy,  with  a  dull 
case-knife  that  has  lost  its  handle  of  horn,  hacking  at  random, 
to  make,  as  she  tells  me,  a  spoon. 

The  older  daughter  and  her  mother  are  busy  at  a  little  fire 
built  at  one  end  of  the  piazza.  They  are  broiling  some  rather 
suspicious-looking  pieces  of  beef,  and  roasting  peeled  plantains, 
for  the  family  lunch,  which  the  laboring  class  convert  into  a 
frugal  noonday  meal  whenever  they  have  the  means  at  hand. 
The  little  boy,  undisfigured  by  clothes  or  dirt,  is  busy  investi- 

B 


18  NEW  GRANADA. 

gating  the  foreigner,  but  at  the  same  time  seems  to  have  a  spe- 
cial anticipatory  interest  in  the  operations  of  his  mother. 

We  are  a  little  higher  than  the  point  of  a  triangular  plain 
that  spreads  out  eastward  to  the  river.  The  western  angle,  near 
us,  is  occupied  by  a  village  of  huts,  some  of  which  merit  the 
name  of  houses,  arranged  around  the  Plaza,  or  public  square, 
that  is  almost  never  wanting  from  a  Granadan  village.  The 
little  stream  in  which  I  have  been  bathing  receives,  just  below,  a 
tributary  from  a  gorge  at  my  left,  skirts  the  village  on  the  north, 
having  also  a  dozen  or  more  houses  on  its  left  bank,  makes  its 
way  among  cane-fields,  plantain-patches,  uncultivated  lands  and 
forest  for  a  mile  or  two,  and  loses  itself  in  the  yellow  current  of 
the  river,  and  hurries  off  to  the  north  to  reach  the  Caribbean 
Sea.  That  river  is  the  Cauca,  and  the  village  is  Vijes. 

Beyond  the  river  are  low  lands  covered  with  forest,  and  in  the 
farthest  east  the  blue  summits  of  the  Quindio  Mountains,  which 
separate  this  most  secluded  valley  from  that  of  the  Magdalena. 

The  nook  of  Vijes  is  separated  from  the  rest  of  the  world  by 
the  river  and  forest  on  the  east,  and  on  all  other  sides  by  a  high 
range  of  steep  rocky  hills,  with  grass-covered  sides,  and  crown- 
ed at  the  summit  with  dense  forest.  Over  these  the  road  down 
the  river  from  the  south  climbs  in  laborious  zigzags,  or  quin- 
gos,  as  they  call  them,  while,  proceeding  down  the  river,  it  finds 
room  to  squeeze  itself  in  between  the  hill  and  the  river,  or,  when 
hard  pressed,  climbs  along  the  steep  side  to  pass  a  difficulty  and 
to  descend  again.  I  used  the  word  road,  but  I  fear  it  will  mis- 
lead the  reader :  a  road  might  imply  travelers — might  be  under- 
stood to  mean  a  path  on  which  two  mules  could  always  pass 
each  other.  The  word  trail  would  better  convey  the  idea  to  a 
Western  man. 

All  this  scene  lies  before  us  now,  owing  to  the  slight  eleva- 
tion of  the  flat  spot  in  the  gorge  of  the  hills  where  this  hut 
stands.  It  is  bathed  in  the  brilliant  but  not  burning  rays  of  a 
vertical  sun — a  scene  of  quiet  beauty,  so  far  out  of  the  way  of 
travel  that  probably  not  an  eye  that  reads  these  lines  has  seen, 
or  will  ever  see,  the  original  that  I  am  trying  to  delineate. 

And  why  shall  I  not  commence,  here  and  now,  those  random 
sketches  that  I  have  so  long  been  promising  my  friends  ?  Well, 
this  shall  be  the  beginning. 


THE  CAUCA  VALLEY.  19 

Now  let  me  fix  the  geography  of  the  place  I  am  dating  from. 
New  Granada  occupies  the  northwest  corner  of  South  America, 
and  extends  from  a  little  north  of  the  Isthmus  of  Panama  to 
the  neighborhood  of  the  equator.  It  is  the  central  fragment  of 
the  three  into  which  Colombia  was  divided  in  1830,  and  com- 
prises one  half  of  the  whole. 

The  Pacific  receives  no  large  river  from  South  America.  The 
Atlantic  receives  most  of  the  water  from  New  Granada  through 
the  Amazon,  Orinoco,  Magdalena,  and  Atrato.  Nine  tenths  of 
the  population  live  on  the  Magdalena  and  its  tributaries.  Of 
these  the  Cauca  is  by  far  the  largest.  This  and  the  Magdalena 
flow  northward  for  many  hundreds  of  miles  in  valleys  parallel 
to  each  other,  having  between  them  the  Quindio  Mountains. 

It  will  best  suit  us  to  view  the  Cauca  as  having  its  origin  in 
the  lofty  and  cold  regions  between  the  provinces  of  Popayan 
and  Pasto.  From  the  volcano  of  Purace,  southeast  of  the  an- 
cient town  of  Popayan,  flows  a  stream  that  justly  merits  the 
name  of  Rio  Vinagre,  as  ten  thousand  parts  of  its  waters  contain 
eleven  of  sulphuric  acid  and  nine  of  hydrochloric,  or  one  part  in 
five  hundred  of  pure  acid.  Even  after  turning  directly  north, 
and  taking  the  name  of  the  Cauca,  no  fish  can  live  in  its  sour 
waters  for  leagues.  Farther  down  it  enters  a  broader  valley,  and 
becomes  a  quiet  but  turbid  navigable  river,  lined  always  on  its 
right  bank,  and  often  on  both,  by  muddy  and  tangled  forest. 
Thus  the  considerable  towns  of  Palmira  and  Cali,  which  are 
opposite  each  other,  and  eighteen  miles  apart,  are  at  quite  a  dis- 
tance from  the  river,  Palmira  on  the  left  banda,  or  side,  and  Cali 
on  the  right.  The  word  banda,  then,  is  not  equivalent  to  bank, 
for  it  embraces  a  space  much  farther  from  the  water. 

Soon  after  passing  Cali  the  western  hills  crowd  down  to  the 
river,  and  in  a  nook  of  them  lies  Vijes,  with  its  fertile,  half-cul- 
tivated plain,  and  limpid,  babbling  brook.  Farther  down  are 
Buga  and  Cartago,  both  east  of  the  river,  and  lastly  old  Antio- 
quia ;  but  here  the  river  has  begun  to  form  a  series  of  rapids, 
becoming  more  violent  below,  as  it  plunges  into  gorges  where  no 
road  nor  foot-path  can  follow  it,  and  shuts  out  all  hope  of  com- 
merce here  finding  an  outlet  either  by  land  or  water,  by  steam- 
boat or  rail-road,  by  canoe  or  pack-mule. 

At  last  comes  a  pause  in  the  rapid  career  of  the  Cauca  when 


20  NEW  GRANADA. 

it  has  nearly  reached  the  level  of  the  sea,  and  it  turns  northeast, 
and  joins  its  turbid  stream  with  the  turbid  stream  of  the  Mag- 
dalena,  and  both  proceed  north  to  the  sea.  But  the  lower  nav- 
igable portion  of  the  river  has  no  neighborhood  with  the  upper. 
No  man  goes  down  there  to  see  his  friends,  buy  goods,  or  sell 
his  produce. 

The  natural  outlet  for  the  commerce  of  this  fertile  valley,  then, 
is  forever  closed.  What  are  its  substitutes  ?  First,  the  pestif- 
erous sea-port  of  Buenaventura,  on  the  Pacific,  lying  just  west 
of  Vijes.  The  land  roads  to  Buenaventura  terminate  at  Jun- 
tas, at  the  forks  of  the  Dagua,  from  whence  there  is  tolerable 
navigation  when  the  river  is  not  too  high  or  too  low.  He  that 
comes  down  to  Juntas  from  the  Cauca  probably  will  find  no 
boats,  and  can  go  no  farther  by  land.  He  that  comes  up  from 
Buenaventura  may  find  no  mules,  and  can  go  no  farther  by  wa- 
ter. There  may  be  a  detention  of  a  week  at  Juntas  in  either 
case.  Hence  Buenaventura  has  no  commerce,  and  even  the 
steamers  that  run  down  the  Pacific  coast  from  Panama  do  not 
stop  there.  The  shortest  road  from  Bogota  to  Buenaventura 
is  to  leave  the  principal  road  of  the  Cauca  at  a  point  east  of  Vi- 
jes, cross  the  river  by  a  private  ferry,  and  begin  to  scale  the 
Western  Cordillera  by  a  crazy  path  from  this  very  spot.  Three 
or  four  hours  of  terrible  climbing  will  bring  you  to  where  little 
streams  are  running  toward  the  Pacific. 

The  other  outlet  to  the  scanty  trade  of  the  valley  is  over  the 
Quindio  Mountains.  About  ten  days'  packing,  in  the  best  of 
weather,  brings  it  to  the  Magdalena,  two  miles  below  Honda ; 
but  if  it  would  reach  the  port  of  Cartagena,  it  must  be  by  a  far- 
ther mule  carriage  from  Calamar  of  65  miles,  a  distance  more 
than  twice  as  great  as  from  here  to  Juntas.  Was  there  ever, 
then,  such  an  out-of-the-way  place  ?  Must  not  human  life  and 
human  nature,  though  essentially  the  same  in  Labrador  and 
Guinea,  exhibit  here  some  very  unique  and  singular  phases? 
We  shall  see. 

Human  nature  is  indeed  every  where  the  same  in  its  essence, 
Lut  infinitely  diversified  by  the  modifying  power  of  external  cir- 
cumstances. Unlike  instinct,  that  scarcely  yields  to  the  strong- 
est influences,  human  nature  bears  the  impress  of  the  slightest 
inappreciable  perturbing  forces.  Ancestry,  soil,  climate,  occu- 


SECLUSION  OF  THE  VALLEY.  21 

pation,  bodily  constitution,  all  have  their  power.  But  almost 
every  where  all  these  are  "borne  down  and  modified,  if  not  neu- 
tralized, by  the  resistless  power  of  the  great  world  of  European 
civilization,  which  circulates  through  all  the  arteries  of  travel, 
so  that  the  most  minute  ramifications  receive  their  share.  So 
the  traveler  who  would  study  the  power  of  local  influences  on 
men  must  go  where  travelers  are  not  wont  to  go,  nor  foreign 
influences  to  penetrate.  He  must  set  himself  leisurely  down  in 
a  foreign  land,  with  a  foreign  language,  a  foreign  climate,  a  for- 
eign religion,  a  foreign  and  local  literature  and  commerce,  or  none 
at  all. 

Such  study  does  Vijes  afford  to  the  Anglo-American  and  Prot- 
estant. He  comes  from  a  scene  where  life  is  a  battle,  a  truce- 
less  warfare  with  adversity  and  competition,  and  where  not  even 
the  dead  can  rest  in  peace  unless  deposited  where  commerce  will 
locate  no  new  railroad,  or  health  and  convenience  demand  no 
new  street.  He  comes  where  winter  can  never  overtake  the 
sluggard,  where  the  maxims  of  Poor  Richard  have  never  been 
heard  of,  where  it  is  cheaper  to  make  a  field  than  defend  a  law- 
suit, and  easier  to  raise  a  new  baby  than  cure  a  sick  one ;  and 
where  even  the  sacred  office  is  a  quiet  monopoly,  undisturbed  by 
the  severe  but  salutary  strifes  which  arise  from  planting  two  or 
three  doctors  and  two  or  three  churches  in  the  same  village. 

Here,  then,  let  us  observe  dispassionately  what  is  before  our 
eyes,  trace  effects  back  to  their  causes,  and  estimate  the  various 
moral  forces  that  have  for  their  resultant  the  Granadan  character. 
I  will  try  to  serve  you  as  the  eye  serves  the  body,  by  laying  be- 
fore you  pictures  of  the  fidelity  of  which  you  shall  have  no  rea- 
son to  doubt ;  and  if  I  ever  draw  any  conclusions  for  you,  it  will 
not  be  because  some  superior  sagacity  is  needed  to  arrive  at 
them,  but  rather  because  they  are  too  obvious  to  be  ignored. 

Vijes  (or  Biges,  for  the  orthography  is  uncertain)  has  a  lati- 
tude of  about  3°  45'  N.,  so  you  may  consider  it  situated  on 
the  equator.  The  sun  ought  therefore  to  set  at  six  invariably ; 
but  as  it  always  goes  into  the  clouds  when  it  is  about  an  hour 
high,  the  people  make  no  account  of  it  afterward.  They  say  the 
sun  "goes  in"  about  five,  but  never  speak  of  its  setting.  Twi- 
light ends  between  half  past  six  and  seven,  so  it  appears  quite 
like  a  natural  sunset  at  about  five ;  and  no  one  notices  whether 


22  NEW  GRANADA. 

the  sun  is  vertical  or  not  at  noon ;  so  that  all  the  diversities 
that  you  derive  from  the  annual  changes  of  the  sun's  declination 
are  unknown  here.  It  may  be  that  even  this  has  its  bearing  on 
character.  Let  a  man  with  us  lose  a  day  by  the  high  water, 
or  by  the  negligence  of  an  attendant,  and  if  he  feels  that  winter 
is  approaching,  or  spring  coming  on,  or  any  other  season  what- 
ever, he  grows  desperate ;  but  a  Granadino  sees  day  after  day 
run  away  like  so  much  Croton  water,  without  concern,  for  there 
is  an  indefinite  quantity  of  the  same  yet  to  come.  The  entire 
absence  of  clocks  and  watches  aids  this  illusion.  I  do  not  know 
that  in  the  entire  population  of  this  little  triangle  (1160)  there 
is  one  of  either.  Nor  is  the  want  much  felt.  Things  go  on  well 
enough  without.  What  an  absurdity  to  measure  the  time  a  man 
works,  when  you  are  only  concerned  in  the  amount  of  work  he 
does !  Some  surgeons  are  wont  to  cut  off  arms  and  legs  by  the 
watch,  but  I  never  yet  heard  it  proposed  to  pay  them  by  the 
minute. 

We  are  at  an  altitude  of  about  3540  feet  above  the  ocean. 
This  is  below  the  lowest  limit  of  wheat  and  the  potato.  In  the 
rare  instances  in  which  we  see  potatoes  or  bread,  they  result  from 
trade  with  higher  lands,  where  the  sugar-cane  can  not  be  culti- 
vated, and  perhaps  not  even  maize.  We  can  do  very  well  with- 
out their  wheat  and  potatoes,  but  they  need  the  product  of  the 
cane  both  for  food  and  drink ;  so  a  commerce  between  the  cold 
lands  and  the  warm  is  inevitable. 

I  know  of  no  reason  that  our  valley  should  be  colder  for  being 
higher,  unless  it  is  that  a  greater  thickness  of  the  crust  of  the 
e^h^pawkte^u^Eramthe  central  fires ;  but  the  fact  can  not 
be  questioned.  Select  a  beautiful  day  in  the  beginning  of  June 
in  New  York,  and  correspondingly  earlier  for  any  point  south, 
and  it  will  show  you  all  the  variation  to  which  the  thermometer 
is  exposed  in  this  paradise  in  all  the  year.  To  come  to  figures, 
the  lowest  I  have  ever  seen  it  is  65°,  and  the  highest  is  86°, 
with  one  exception  of  89°.  But  the  heat  of  such  a  day  is  more 
supportable  here  than  there,  for  we  have  only  about  ten  hours 
of  sunshine,  preceded  and  followed  by  deliciously  cool  nights. 

The  weather  affects  national  character,  directly  by  means  of 
dress,  and  indirectly  through  agricultural  products.  The  most 
important  of  them  in  this  respect  is  the  platano,  which,  with  bad 


COMPETITION  IN  EELIGION.  23 

taste,  we  represent  by  the  English  word  plantain.  The  plantain 
saves  man  more  labor  than  steam.  It  gives  him  the  greatest 
amount  of  food  from  a  given  piece  of  ground,  and  with  a  labor  so 
small  that  that  of  raising  it  to  the  mouth  after  roasting  is  a  ma- 
terial part  of  it.  "  New  Granada  would  be  something,"  says 
my  neighbor  Caldas,  "if  we  could  exterminate  the  platano  and 
the  cane :  this  is  the  parent  of  drunkenness,  that  of  idleness." 

But  among  all  the  influences  of  which  we  are  to  trace  the  ef- 
fects, none  is  more  powerful  and  widespread  than  that  of  relig- 
ion. I  must  deal  with  this  tenderly ;  for  I  am  a  Protestant, 
and  may  be  suspected  of  hostility  to  the  Romish  religion  in  it- 
self. Still,  I  ought  to  speak  about  it  honestly,  whether  I  incur 
suspicion  or  not ;  but  my  theological  objections  to  it  as  a  re- 
ligion of  forms  are  distinct  from  my  political  ones  as  a  monopoly 
of  worship.  True  it  is,  that  by  law  this  monopoly,  which  has 
continued  since  the  first  Spaniard  entered  the  country,  ceased  on 
the  30th  of  August,  1853,  but,  in  effect,  it  must  continue  till 
other  churches  have  been  brought  into  competition  with  that 
hitherto  established  by  law,  and,  till  lately,  the  only  one  tolerated. 
You  must  be  prepared,  then,  to  find  the  priests  here  much  worse 
than  in  Ireland  and  Germany,  where  competition  insures  a  bet- 
ter article,  and  still  less  can  they  compare  with  those  of  the 
United  States,  which  are  to  the  mass  of  Catholic  clergy  as  the 
apples  in  a  prize  exhibition  are  to  those  of  our  ordinary  or- 
chards. 

In  speaking  of  the  influences  of  climate,  I  should  have  alluded 
to  the  common  impression  that  the  passions  of  the  inhabitants 
of  the  torrid  zone  are  much  more  violent  than  those  of  northern 
races.  Nothing  could  be  more  untrue  and  more  improbable  than 
that  the  blood  should  flow  in  fiercer  torrents  through  the  veins 
of  the  languid  sons  of  the  tropics  than  in  our  own.  All  the  dif- 
ference in  morality  is  more  than  explained  by  the  influence  of 
priestly  example,  vows  of  celibacy,  and  the  confessional,  and  by 
the  want  of  restraint  either  from  conscience  or  public  opinion. 

The  remaining  influences  that  modify  character  here  are  less 
in  amount  perhaps,  but  still  appreciable.  Ancestry,  or  principles 
and  habits  handed  down  from  father  to  son,  hold  perhaps  the 
next  place ;  and  the  ancestry  of  this  people  has  been  peculiar. 
I  am  constrained  to  admit  that  the  Conquerors,  as  they  here  style 


24  NEW  GRANADA. 

the  first  Spanish  invaders,  were  a  sanguinary  and  remorseless 
race.  The  best  families  retain  this  blood  nearly  pure,  but  it  is 
only  on  rare  and  terrible  occasions  that  the  ancient  ferocity 
comes  to  light  in  some  popular  outbreak.  The  remaining  classes 
present  all  possible  variations  between  the  white,  the  negro,  and 
the  aboriginal ;  only  this  last  element  is  scarcer  here  than  in 
any  other  part  of  New  Granada,  probably  because  the  conquer- 
ors treated  the  Indians  with  more  severity  here  than  any  where 
else.  They  found  the  valley  tenfold  more  populous  perhaps 
than  it  now  is :  and  what  did  they  do  with  all  the  inhabitants  ? 
I  dare  not  try  to  answer  this  question.  Both  the  Indians  and 
the  negroes  were  of  a  mild,  loving  character,  and  if  the  negro  el- 
ement has  survived  the  Indian,  it  may  be  because  they  had  to 
buy  the  negroes,  where  the  Indians  cost  them  nothing  but  the 
catching,  like  the  dodo  of  the  Indian  Isles. 

To  make  the  isolation  of  this  valley  the  more  complete  and 
impassable,  its  beautiful  language,  the  Spanish,  bears  the  same 
relation  to  the  principal  European  tongues  that  an  island  does 
to  a  continent.  An  uneducated  man  may  get  along  very  well 
with  one  language,  provided  that  be  German,  English,  or  French ; 
but  to  be  limited  to  the  Spanish,  a  language  remarkably  deficient 
in  periodical  literature,  in  original  books,  and  in  translations,  is 
to  be  cut  off  from  the  world  by  a  wall  of  circumvallation. 

Such  is  the  country  we  have  for  our  study ;  but  what  course 
shall  our  investigations  take  ?  The  worst,  perhaps,  would  be  the 
form  of  a  diary,  passing  repeatedly  over  the  same  ground,  and 
detailing  snch  things  as  strike  the  traveler's  fancy.  Such  a 
work  is  easy  of  execution,  amuses  as  well  as  any  other,  but  does 
not  so  well  subserve  the  purposes  for  which  travels  are  general- 
ly read.  I  would  much  prefer  the  analytic  method  of  Tschudi, 
discarding  entirely  all  relations  of  time,  and  giving  the  results 
in  a  purely  geographical  treatise ;  but  I  distrust  my  powers  to 
make  such  a  work  interesting,  even  if  readable.  I  choose,  there- 
fore, a  middle  course.  If  it  is  necessary  for  any  one  to  be  pre- 
cise about  dates,  and  the  order  of  time,  or  the  number  of  times 
of  visiting  such  and  such  places,  let  him  consult  the  itinerary  in 
the  appendix ;  if  not,  let  him  confide  himself  to  the  writer,  who 
will  bring  him  here  over  a  way  that  he  might  have  come. 

One  word  farther  as  to  the  persons  that  will  figure  in  the  nar- 


PLAN  AND  AIM.  25 

rative.  It  has  been  the  custom  of  some  English  travelers  in 
Spanish  countries  to  take  great  liberties  with  the  characters  and 
circumstances  of  their  hosts.  One,  for  instance,  after  dining 
with  a  former  bishop  of  Popa yan,  not  only  speaks  with  due  com- 
mendation of  the  bishop's  wine,  but  also  the  beauty  of  the  bish- 
op's mistress !  To  avoid  a  practice  that  hardly  comports  with 
my  notions  of  hospitality,  without,  at  the  same  time,  depriving 
my  readers  of  my  most  accurate  and  reliable  observations,  I  shall 
sometimes  change  the  names  of  persons  where  I  have  to  say 
something  disagreeable  of  them.  And  if,  through  the  officious- 
ness  of  any  meddler,  any  frailty  of  a  man  whose  bread  (platano) 
I  have  eaten  shall  become  more  widely  known,  I  protest  that  it 
shall  not  have  been  by  any  legitimate  use  of  my  book,  and  that 
I  would  sooner  have  suppressed  a  dozen  facts  than  that  one 
should  be  thus  dishonorably  used.  For  the  rest,  I  trust  to  dif- 
ference of  language,  distance,  seclusion,  and  my  honest  artifices 
to  cover,  like  the  cloak  of  charity,  a  multitude  of  sins. 

But,  farther,  fiction  has  no  place  here.  I  have  been  eye-wit- 
ness of  all  the  things  that  I  profess  to  have  seen,  and,  from  re- 
spect for  the  reader,  as  well  as  for  truth's  sake,  I  will  never  tam- 
per with  facts. 


CHAPTER  IL 

SABANILLA. 

First  View  of  New  Granada. — Perpetual  Snow. — Rio  Hacha. — Goajiro  Indians. 
— Santa  Marta. — Mouth  of  the  Magdalena. — A  Native. — Port  Officers,  and  the 
Passenger  without  a  Passport. — Sabanilla  School. — Collecting  the  Eevenue. — 
Rotation  in  Office. 

MY  first  view  of  New  Granada  was  on  the  21st  of  August, 
1852.  You  have  here,  good  reader,  one  date  on  which  you  may 
rely ;  remember  it  well :  perhaps  you  may  not  get  another  in  the 
whole  book.  The  sun  had  not  yet  reached  our  horizon,  even  had 
there  been  no  clouds  in  it,  when  the  captain  called  out  that  there 
was  land  in  sight.  I  did  not  believe  him,  but  came  out  to  con- 
firm with  another  observation  the  strange  fact  that  some  men 
will  lie  even  when  the  truth  would  serve  them  equally  well. 


26  NEW  GRANADA. 

I  doubted  my  eyes  as  much  as  I  did  the  captain's  words,  so 
improbable  was  what  I  saw.  Imagine  a  mass  of  the  whitest 
clouds  heaped  one  upon  another  in  the  south,  tinged  with  a  del- 
icate rose-color  wherever  the  rays  of  the  sun,  yet  unrisen  on  us, 
could  reach  them,  while  deep  recesses  in  other  places  presented 
yet  the  obscurity  of  night.  I  look  for  one  unsupported  mass, 
some  impossible  crag  for  the  captain  to  explain,  but  can  not  find 
one,  and  I  begin  to  doubt  his  mendacity  this  once. 

True,  it  is  not  impossible  that  land  should  be  in  sight.  Un- 
questionably we  should  see  it  were  the  horizon  clear  of  clouds, 
an  event  we  can  never  expect  in  the  tropics.  At  a  distance  of 
50  or  100  miles  from  the  coast  the  mountains  are  said  to  rise  to 
the  height  of  24,000  feet,  and,  of  course,  are  capped  with  perpet- 
ual snow,  but  what  can  they  have  to  do  with  the  unearthly  spec- 
tacle before  me?  Once  admit  that  it  is  but  cloud  that  I  see, 
and  the  vision  takes  its  place  among  the  sublimest  sunrises  I 
ever  saw ;  but  call  it  earth,  and  Homer  would  scarce  dare  invent 
such  an  Olympus  for  his  gods. 

A  strange  optical  illusion  still  kept  up  my  incredulity.  These 
masses  appeared  to  be  towering  up  some  10  or  15  degrees,  ris- 
ing out  of  the  clouds  resting  on  the  sea  at  a  point  that  we  count 
the  horizon,  that  is,  where  the  sea  disappears  from  view  by  rea- 
son of  its  convexity.  I  took  a  little  sextant  from  my  state-room 
to  measure  the  altitude  of  the  highest  peak,  and  it  gave  me  but 
3°  12'.  Even  this  I  doubted  till  confirmed  by  the  captain's 
quadrant. 

But  clouds  are  not  so  brief  as  morning  views  of  snow-capped 
Andes.  It  is  not  on  every  voyage  that  this  glorious  sight  is 
vouchsafed,  and  soon,  too  soon,  the  clouds  shut  it  in  forever. 

We  were  now  sailing  westward  nearly  parallel  with  the  coast, 
and  opposite  us  to  the  southeast  was  the  province  of  Rio  Hacha. 
Little  communication  by  land  has  this  province  with  the  rest  of 
the  world.  Around  the  base  of  these  mountains  lives  a  fierce  tribe 
of  unsubdued  Indians,  the  Goajiros.  When  arms  have  failed 
against  the  savages,  the  Spaniards  have  been  wont  to  resort  to 
missionaries  to  subjugate  them.  Even  these  have  failed  with 
the  Goajiros,  who  would  make  the  priest  load  his  own  shoulders 
with  the  things  his  peons  had  brought,  and  thus  conduct  him  to 
their  borders.  Still  they  treated  with  great  kindness  a  lady  who 


SANTA  MABTA.  27 

was  shipwrecked  on  her  voyage  from  Maracaibo  to  Santa  Marta, 
a  Senora  Gallego,  if  I  recollect  aright.  I  had  hoped  ere  this  to 
secure  some  letters  from  her  detailing  her  adventures  and  the 
character  of  the  Goajiros,  Ibut  now  fear  they  will  never  meet  the 
public  eye. 

One  curious  custom  of  the  Goajiros  I  suspect  may  have  ex- 
tended to  other  tribes.  A  maternal  uncle  was  counted  a  nearer 
relative  than  the  father.  The  reason  given  by  one  of  them  was 
this :  "  The  child  of  a  man's  wife  may  be  his  or  it  may  not ; 
but  beyond  a  peradventure  the  son  of  the  daughter  of  his  mother 
must  be  his  nephew."  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  in  some  na- 
tions of  South  American  Indians,  not  only  property,  but  also 
crowns,  have  descended  according  to  this  very  unconfiding  law. 

At  length  we  are  nearer  shore,  and  now  we  can  see  land  that 
looks  like  earth,  and  not  like  heaven;  but  it  looks  desolate 
enough.  It  seems  to  be  a  bare,  dry  ridge  of  mountain,  without 
trees,  herbage,  water,  or  inhabitants.  Why  is  it  that  we  expect 
perpetual  verdure  in  the  tropics,  and  imagine  that  vegetation, 
which  knows  no  other  rest  than  from  want  of  water,  could  pos- 
sibly attain  the  freshness  of  that  which  has  just  thrown  off  the 
weight  of  four  months'  snows,  and  has  so  much  less  time  to  get 
its  year's  growth  in  ?  We  are  expecting  impossibilities ;  but 
he  who  approaches  Santa  Marta  near  the  close  of  the  dry  sea- 
son, as  we  now  do,  with  these  notions,  must  be  disappointed  in- 
deed. 

After  passing  a  point  of  land,  we  looked  southeast,  and  at  the 
bottom  of  a  bay  that  serves  for  a  roadstead  rather  than  a  har- 
bor, we  saw  Santa  Marta.  The  Cathedral  was  distinctly  visi- 
ble, rising  from  a  mass  of  houses,  but  I  had  no  nearer  view. 

Nature  seems  to  have  denied  the  interior  of  New  Granada 
any  good  outlet  for  commerce.  The  Santa  Marta  people  think 
that  there  the  coast  is  most  accessible  from  Bogota,  but  I  can 
not  readily  believe  it.  Occasionally  the  Magdalena  steam-boats 
of  the  Santa  Marta  Company  pass  the  bar  of  the  river  and  the 
small  space  of  open  sea  necessarily  crossed  to  reach  the  town, 
and  they  say  they  do  it  without  danger,  but  they  rarely  ven- 
ture it. 

The  unfortunate  traveler  bound  for  Bogota,  whose  impatience 
leads  him  to  leave  his  vessel  at  Santa  Marta,  has  first  some 


28  NEW  GRANADA. 

leagues  to  go  by  land,  then  to  take  a  canoe  or  small  boat  over 
ponds  and  through  narrow  channels,  till  he  counts  himself  hap- 
py to  reach  Eemolino.  Brief  happiness,  if  he  finds  no  steamer 
there !  I  have  seen  Kemolino,  and  should  judge  that  a  deten- 
tion there  would  be  worse  than  a  residence  in  one  of  our  prisons 
in  dog-days.  The  town,  when  I  visited  it,  had  been  recently 
overflowed — no  uncommon  occurrence,  I  should  judge,  by  the 
eight-inch  dike  that  promises  defense  to  the  town  from  the 
river. 

Santa  Marta,  I  am  told,  has  no  good  harbor.  Though  shel- 
tered from  the  prevailing  wind  from  the  northeast,  still  ships 
will  drag  their  anchors  rather  than  face  the  gusts  that  come 
down  the  mountains  back  of  the  town.  As  for  piers,  where 
a  ship  may  lie  to  discharge  and  take  in  freight,  you  must  not 
expect  such  a  thing  in  South  America. 

At  Santa  Marta  you  leave  the  mountains,  and  at  length,  in 
following  on  west,  you  lose  the  land  entirely  if  the  weather  is  not 
very  clear.  After  some  hours,  a  fringe  of  bushes  appears  on 
your  left,  suggesting  rather  the  idea  of  a  submerged  thicket 
than  a  shore.  At  length  the  ship  enters  muddy  water — she  is 
sailing  across  the  mouth  of  the  Magdalena.  The  fresh  water, 
even  when  surcharged  with  mud,  is  lighter  than  sea-water,  and 
floats  on  the  surface ;  but  here  may  be  seen  a  rare  phenomenon. 
The  tawny  flood  that  is  spreading  over  the  top  of  the  sea  strikes 
against  the  south  side  of  the  vessel,  but  can  not  pass  under.  In 
place  of  it  boils  up  clear  sea-water  on  the  north  side.  It  re- 
mains unmixed  with  the  fresh  water  so  long  as  you  can  see  it. 

Parti-colored  water  is  a  rare  sight.  He  who  has  once  well 
seen  it  at  the  mouth  of  the  Missouri  does  not  soon  forget  it.  He 
wonders  how  it  is  possible  for  a  visible  distinction  to  remain  so 
long  between  two  rivers  flowing  in  the  same  bed.  The  limpid 
Mississippi  is  quietly  flowing  south,  when,  of  a  sudden,  the  yel- 
low Missouri  bursts  in  upon  it  like  a  race-horse,  so  that  the 
muddy  water  seems  to  gain  the  centre  of  the  river  at  a  single 
bound.  They  boil  into  each  other,  still  without  mixing.  Here 
you  see  far  within  the  clear  water  a  patch  of  mud,  like  a  squad- 
ron of  an  adverse  army  far  in  advance  of  the  main  body  of  the 
attacking  party ;  there  a  piece  of  clear  water  refusing  either  to 
retreat  or  mix  with  the  less  pure  masses  around  it,  till  you  seem 


MOUTH  OF  THE  MAGDALENA.  29 

to  imagine  a  moral  force  within  that  keeps  up  the  lines  of  dis- 
tinction so  sharp  and  clear. 

Off  the  mouth  of  the  Magdalena,  the  wonder  would  be  invis- 
ible but  for  the  intervention  of  the  vessel.  You  are  told  that 
there  is  a  flood  beneath  a  flood,  but  you  could  see  nothing  did 
not  the  keel  of  the  ship  hold  back  the  water  of  the  river,  to  let 
that  of  the  sea  come  up  with  the  same  shades  of  color,  the  same 
contrasts  and  well-defined  lines,  as  in  the  Father  of  Waters. 

At  length  there  appears  over  the  low  trees  a  large  white 
building.  It  is  the  custom-house  (aduaria)  of  Sabanilla.  It 
gives  you  good  hopes  of  the  country  to  see  so  fine  a  building, 
for  it  appears,  at  least,  good  enough  for  a  second-rate  port  in  the 
United  States. 

The  flag  of  our  Union  is  hoisted  to  call  a  pilot,  and  in  due 
time  a  boat  is  seen  approaching.  It  is  something  to  see  a  new- 
face  after  a  voyage  of  twenty  days ;  but  to  see  one  of  another 
race  and  nation  in  his  own  home,  unaltered  by  travel,  is  enough 
to  excite  a  deep  interest  in  any  one  who  is  just  beginning  his 
foreign  wanderings.  The  boat  contained  the  pilot,  his  little 
son,  and  a  negro.  The  pilot  and  his  boy  had  on  enough  clothes, 
and  dirty  enough,  but  the  negro  was  half  naked,  and  of  a  stupid, 
vacant  countenance.  I  could  not  refer  the  other  two  to  any  one 
of  the  five  races  of  man,  but  it  seemed  as  if  three  of  them,  at 
least,  had  contributed  to  the  blood  in  their  veins. 

Now  the  word  is  given,  and  the  anchor  is  let  go !  It  is  an 
event  in  a  man's  life,  when,  for  weeks,  he  has  been  moving,  with 
no  visible  object  to  mark  his  progress  or  fix  his  situation,  whose 
ideas  of  locality  have  all  been  cooped  into  the  space  of  a  few 
yards,  to  find  his  ship,  so  long  a  world  by  itself,  again  part  of 
the  great  world.  Yes ;  our  position  is  fixed,  and  what  we  see 
now  we  shall  see  to-morrow  in  the  same  places.  We  are  twen- 
ty or  thirty  rods  from  a  shore  that  runs  north  and  south  along 
the  foot  of  a  low,  green  hill,  covered  with  sparse  woods.  On 
that  hill,  southwest  of  us,  is  the  pretentious,  unoccupied  custom- 
house, and  at  the  foot  a  group  of  sheds,  and  a  little  wharf  where 
boats  can  land ;  there  is  none  for  ships.  I  ask  for  the  town, 
and  they  show  me  a  few  acres  of  low  flat  land  and  low  thatched 
roofs  two  miles  south.  There  is  Sabanilla,  and  the  nearest  resi- 
dences of  men. 


30  NEW  GRANADA. 

Scarcely  had  the  anchor  reached  the  bottom,  when  another 
boat  approached,  with  a  more  numerous  company  of  health-offi- 
cers and  custom-house  men.  Contrary  to  all  the  predictions  of 
the  captain,  they  pronounced  me  free  to  go  ashore  when  I  liked. 
For  a  fortnight,  no  occasion  had  been  lost  of  impressing  on  my 
mind  that  I  was  to  be  taken  off  the  ship  by  a  file  of  soldiers, 
carried  to  prison,  kept  there  till  the  vessel  was  ready  to  leave, 
and  then  put  aboard  again.  So  much  was  the  captain's  mind 
exercised  by  this,  that  he  declared  he  would  never  carry  anoth- 
er passenger  without  seeing  that  his  passport  was  in  due  form, 
and  the  first  item  of  his  report  to  the  collector,  of  the  contents 
of  his  ship,  was,  "  One  passenger  without  a  passport." 

Meanwhile  I  strained  my  eyes  shoreward  to  catch  the  first 
glimpses  of  tropical  vegetation.  I  had  indeed  seen,  in  pass- 
ing before  the  mouth  of  the  Magdalena,  some  stems  of  plantains, 
and  masses  of  Pistia  and  Pontederia,  detached  from  the  low, 
marshy  banks  of  the  Magdalena ;  but  the  curiosity  excited  by 
this  earnest  was  in  no  way  to  be  gratified  by  any  thing  yet  vis- 
ible in  the  common-looking  woods  that  lined  the  hill-side  west 
of  the  harbor,  the  Nisperal. 

No  sign  of  human  labor  was  visible,  save  the  showy  custom- 
house and  its  attendant  hovels,  nearer  than  the  dingy  town. 
What  could  be  the  peculiar  merits  of  the  favored  spot  that  at- 
tracted all  the  population  away  from  the  centre  of  business  ? 
I  was  determined  to  see,  and  got  into  a  boat  that  was  going 
up  there.  I  found  it  a  piece  of  salt  marsh,  a  few  inches  above 
high  water,  covered  with  one-story  cottages,  built  of  mud,  and 
thatched  with  cat-tail  flags^ — Typha.  All  of  them  appeared  alike, 
made  generally  of  two  rooms,  both  adjoining  the  street,  one  only 
having  an  outside  door.  The  unglazed  windows,  each  covered 
with  a  grating,  built  out  a  little  way  into  the  street,  the  reja, 
gave  it  a  dreary,  prison-like  aspect.  These  projecting  rejas  let 
out  the  head  of  the  tenant,  so  as  to  see  up  and  down  the  street. 
Occasionally  they  catch  the  head  of  the  passer-by  on  a  sharp 
corner,  but  not  so  often  as  I  should  expect.  A  salutary  fear 
of  this  accident  becomes  habitual  with  him. 

The  town  of  Sabanilla  is  as  dense  as  any  factory  village,  and 
as  much  more  homely  than  they  can  be  as  mud  and  thatch  is 
worse  than  brick  and  slate.  Not  a  tree,  bush,  or  weed  is  found 


SABANILLA.  31 

in  the  streets ;  but  a  few  steps  brought  me  to  an  opening  in  a 
fence,  where  I  pounced  upon  a  bush  in  flower — the  first  green 
thing  within  reach  of  my  hands.  It  was  Laguncularia  race- 
mosa,  a  common  Antillan  Combretate  shrub.  I  fell  at  once  to 
dissecting  its  peculiar  fruit.  It  left  a  permanent  mark  on  my 
bright  new  knife  from  its  corrosive  juice. 

A  little  farther  on  I  saw  the  papaya — Carica  Papaya — well 
translated  by  the  word  papaw.  Unfortunately,  we  have  applied 
the  name  to  a  very  different  plant,  the  Asiminia  triloba,  that  has 
nothing  in  common  with  the  true  papaw.  The  branchless  tree, 
ten  feet  high,  with  the  flowers,  often  unisexual,  clustered  about 
the  summit  of  the  almost  hollow  stem,  is  at  once  recognized  by 
any  one  who  has  a  previous  idea  of  this  peculiar  genus.  I  find 
there  are  other  species  of  them,  but  if  any  of  them  have  the 
strange  property  of  making  meat  tender,  it  is  unsuspected  here. 
I  found  later  a  Jamaica  gentleman,  who  "  knew  of  a  man"  who 
used  the  leaves  to  pack  meat  in  for  this  purpose,  but  I  would 
like  to  see  the  matter  made  the  subject  of  scientific  experiment. 

The  next  thing  that  caught  my  eye  was  huge  Cactate  stems, 
on  the  sand-hill  back  of  the  town.  They  are  triangular,  and 
ten  feet  high.  I  have  never  found  flowers  on  them,  but  one  of 
them  must  be  the  famous  night-blooming  Cereus  grandiflorus, 
or  an  allied  species. 

It  seems  as  if  all  the  houses  or  huts  of  Sabanilla  might  be 
taverns  or  stores.  A  remarkable  prevalence  of  bottles  and  ab- 
sence of  casks  strikes  you  on  entering  the  stores.  The  first 
place  I  went  into  was  a  large,  almost  vacant  room,  the  house, 
perhaps,  of  some  custom-house  officer.  I  saw  an  object  on  the 
floor  that  I  took  for  a  large  monkey  at  the  first  glance,  but,  to 
my  disgust,  a  second  view  showed  it  to  be  a  baby,  naked,  and 
of  the  precise  color  of  the  earth  of  the  floor  on  which  it  was 
crawling.  A  similar  specimen  of  the  same  species  I  saw  in  an- 
other house  swinging  in  a  hammock,  a  piece  of  dry  hide  being 
placed  under  the  child. 

The  next  house  I  entered  was  formally  "placed  at  my  dis- 
position," which  simply  means  that  I  am  welcome.  Its  inhab- 
itants seemed  to  be  a  woman,  who  may  have  been  a  widow  (you 
can  never  tell  widows  here) ;  her  son,  a  customs'  guard ;  and  Jo- 
aquin  Calvo,  M.D.,  a  custom-house  officer.  They  kindly  pro- 


32  NEW  GRANADA. 

posed  to  procure  me  a  horse  to  go  next  day  to  Barranquilla, 
distant  about  eight  miles,  directly  up  the  river. 

Some  horsemen  rode  past  while  I  was  sitting  with  them,  and 
fairly  started  me  to  my  feet  with  the  flaming  colors  of  their  ruanas. 
Those  of  the  better  class  may  be  regarded  as  striped  shawls, 
woven  of  thread  cotton,  with  a  few  inches  of  seam  left  unsewed 
in  the  centre  to  admit  the  head.  The  name  of  poncho,  by  which 
we  best  know  them,  must  not  be  used  in  some  parts  of  the 
country,  and  is  little  used  any  where.  The  heavier  article, 
made  of  two  thicknesses  of  flannel  or  blanket,  often  thick 
enough  to  shed  water,  is  called  a  bayeton.  Ruanas  may  cost 
from  two  to  five  dollars ',  a  good  bayeton,  an  article  no  traveler 
should  be  without,  costs  about  eight  dollars.  When  made  of 
India-rubber  cloth  it  is  called  an  encauchado. 

One  hut  of  two  rooms  had  the  shop  in  one  room,  and  the  other 
served  as  a  family  room  and  for  the  public  school.  This  consisted 
of  about  a  dozen  boys.  It  is  contrary  to  law  to  have  girls  and 
boys  in  the  same  school,  and  as  it  is  only  large  places  that  can 
maintain  two  public  schools,  girls  must  generally  learn  as  they 
can  at  home,  or,  as  is  too  often  the  case,  go  ignorant.  I  now 
look  at  Sabanilla  with  a  more  experienced  eye,  and  conclude  that 
it  is  the  meanest  town  that  I  have  seen  in  New  Granada,  and  its 
school  is  also  the  poorest.  Here  I  saw  naked  boys  in  school. 
Elsewhere  it  would  not  be  allowed.  The  teacher  was  a  mere 
boy,  and  the  school  was  almost  completely  destitute  of  books. 
But  it  is  a  credit  to  such  a  town  to  have  a  school  at  all,  when  it 
has  no  church. 

I  walked  down  from  Sabanilla  to  the  custom-house  wharf. 
The  most  striking  thing  on  the  way  is  the  mangrove-tree,  Rhi- 
zophora  Mangle,  called  here  mangle.  The  roots  branch  out 
from  some  way  up  the  stem,  and  the  fruit  stays  on  the  trees 
till  some  time  after  the  seed  has  sprouted,  and  its  radicle,  escap- 
ing the  rind  of  the  fruit,  hangs  dangling  in  the  air  over  the  wa- 
ter and  mud  where  it  buries  itself  when  it  drops. 

I  picked  up  here  the  acridly  poisonous  fruit  of  the  manchinael- 
tree,  Hippomane  Mancinella.  Both  this  and  chamomile  are 
called  here  manzanilla,  a  diminutive  of  manzana,  an  apple.  It 
may  be  the  poison  of  the  tree  that  makes  it  fatal  to  sleep  under 
its  shade,  but  I  should  not  like  to  sleep  out  of  doors  at  any  place 


CUSTOM-HOUSE.  33 

where  it  would  grow.  Here,  too,  a  violently  stinging  plant  of 
the  same  order,  Cnidosculus  stimulosa,  had  wellnigh  "stimula- 
ted" my  fingers. 

The  custom-house,  as  I  said,  is  a  beautiful  large  white  build- 
ing, with  an  inclined  plane  leading  up  to  it  from  the  miserable 
little  wharf,  to  which  goods  must  be  brought  in  lighters.  Not  a 
bale  of  goods  has  ever  traveled  up  to  the  custom-house,  nor  can 
I  see  that  a  single  room  of  it  has  ever  been  of  use  to  the  nation. 
Had  the  money  been  spent  in  building  a  ship-wharf  instead  of 
an  inclined  plane,  and  a  large  store-house  on  the  wharf,  it  would 
have  been  of  great  service  to  commerce.  But  other  nations  have 
their  follies ;  and  one,  at  least,  builds  custom-houses  where  the 
revenue  is  less  than  the  cost  of  collecting. 

The  custom-house  hill  would  make  a  fine  site  for  a  city  but 
for  the  want  of  water.  Sabanilla  is  supplied  by  boats,  that  go 
to  a  point  where  the  river  is  fresh,  pull  out  a  plug,  let  in  as  much 
as  they  want,  and  return  with  it  washing  their  feet.  The  sup- 
ply of  eatables  is  more  mysterious  to  me.  I  heard  of  a  farm 
some  three  miles  off;  but  beyond  that  papaw  and  a  young  cocoa 
palm,  I  saw  not  the  first  approximation  to  cultivation. 

Under  the  hill,  at  the  wharf,  the  low  sheds  belong  to  a  foreign 
firm  in  New  Granada,  and  are  rented  to  the  government.  Here 
I  saw  the  collector  and  inspector  passing  goods.  Their  swords 
and  pistols  were  lying  on  the  table  by  them,  and  their  attendants 
were  ripping  open  every  bale,  broaching  every  cask,  opening  ev- 
ery box,  and  weighing  all  things,  wet  and  dry.  Such  is  the  law. 
The  inspector  placed  the  weights  on  the  scale,  and  the  collector 
recorded  their  several  weights.  If  the  weights  of  the  several  par- 
cels -were  nearly  equal,  the  vigilance  of  the  officers  would  relax 
a  little  after  probing,  ripping,  and  broaching  some  fifty  parcels. 

I  do  not  suppose  smuggling  is  impossible  at  Sabanilla,  but 
its  chief  difficulty  is  not  in  the  seal  on  the  main  hatch  and  the 
watchman  on  board,  but  rather  in  the  uninhabited  state  of  the 
country  around  the  landing.  Much,  however,  may  be  done  by 
bribery,  and  many  officers  will  be  found  open  to  it.  In  the  short 
interval  that  our  vessel  lay  in  the  harbor,  I  believe  nearly  all  the 
officers  of  the  port  were  changed.  The  displaced  collector  asked 
my  certificate  that  he  was  not  intoxicated  when  he  visited  us, 
and  I  readily  gave  it. 

c 


34  NEW  GRANADA. 


CHAPTER  IIL 

B  A  E  E  A  N  Q  U I  L  L  A. 

Ride  to  Barranquilla. — First  Spot  in  the  Tropics. — Lizards. — Mail-carrier. — 
Town. — Government  of  New  Granada. — Governor. — Prison. — Church. — Boat 
Expedition. — Bongo. — Poling. — A  Night  with  Bogas  and  Mosquitoes. — Cana 
de  la  Pina. — Harbor  of  Sabanilla. 

THE  next  day  was  my  ride  to  Barranquilla.  I  started  early 
to  avoid  the  heat,  and  took  a  cup  of  coffee  at  the  house  where 
they  offered  me  the  horse.  I  never  tasted  so  good  coffee  before 
in  my  life,  and  I  am  sorry  to  say  that,  in  all  my  subsequent  trav- 
els, I  have  not  seen  another  cup  like  it.  There  was  a  fragrance 
about  it  that  I  should  like  to  meet  again. 

This  ride  might  be  called  one  of  the  epochs  of  my  life.  A 
botanist  feels  a  growing  desire  to  visit  the  tropics  every  time 
that  he  examines  or  arranges  plants  from  the  sunny  lands.  The 
difficulty  of  gratifying  the  desire  generally  grows  with  its  growth 
and  strengthens  with  its  strength,, and  remains  for  life  a  case  of 
stable  equilibrium  or  equal  balance  of  centrifugal  and  centripetal 
forces.  In  my  case  the  centripetal  force  had  proved  too  weak, 
and  here  I  was  traversing  the  space  I  had  so  long  desired  to  en- 
ter. It  was  like  an  illimitable  conservatory.  The  little  bead- 
peas,  Abrus  precatorius,  lay  scattered  on  the  ground.  They  are 
familiar  to  many  at  the  North  from  their  beauty.  They  are  of 
a  bright  red,  with  a  round  black  spot.  I  was  surprised  not  to 
find  more  Aroid  plants,  for  I  saw  but  one  climbing  against  the 
trunks  of  trees,  and  of  this  I  barely  found  one  flower.  I  saw  a 
beautiful  passion-flower — apparently  Passiflora  quadrangularis 
— picked  it,  and  threw  it  away  again.  In  short,  the  day  seemed 
filled  to  the  brink  with  a  tide  of  happiness  which  seemed  every 
moment  ready  to  overflow. 

It  is  said  that  the  traveler  retains  for  life  a  peculiar  affection 
for  the  first  spot  where  his  feet  have  pressed  a  tropical  soil. 
Certain  it  is  that  my  mind  turns  back  with  strong  longings  from 
the  happier  scenes  that  now  surround  me  to  the  Lower  Magda- 


THE  FIRST  RIDE.  35 

lena.  I  may  be  obliged  to  confess  it  is  a  dry,  sterile,  desolate 
region,  with  inhabitants  few  and  far  between,  and  of  the  ruder 
cast  of  Granadinos  ;  but  I  love  it,  and  always  shall,  next  to  the 
rocky  little  farm  that  I  first  called  home.  But  what  a  contrast ! 

The  farm  in  Westminster,  Vermont,  could  boast  the  best  as- 
sortment of  rocks,  the  finest  and  tallest  snow-drifts,  and  "the 
most  diminutive  trout  I  ever  knew,  while  my  new  love  was 
blazing  with  a  tropical  drought  and  burning  sand,  a  very  para- 
dise for  lizards. 

The  lizards  were  numerous,  but  not  large.  They  are  not  well 
studied,  for  there  is  a  strong  belief  that  some  of  them  are  ven- 
omous. Even  Dr.  Minor  B.  Halstead,  of  Panama,  believes  that 
it  was  a  lizard  that  bit  a  man  whom  he  saw  dead  with  a  ven-* 
omous  wound ;  and  they  tell  strange  stories  of  a  lizard  in  Bogo- 
ta that  they  call  salamanqueja.  They  say  that  a  body  of  sol- 
diers drank  from  a  jar  of  liquor,  and  all  died.  They  found,  on 
examination,  a  salamanqueja  at  the  bottom  of  the  jar.  I  believe 
them  all  harmless.  They  are  not  easily  caught,  although  their 
long  tail  seems  to  serve  no  other  purpose  than  as  a  handle  to 
take  them  by,  just  as  Cuba  or  Panama  would  be  to  the  Model 
Republic. 

In  the  day's  ride  I  found  no  houses  except  at  a  small  town 
called  La  Playa — the  beach.  It  has  a  small  Plaza — the  al- 
most universal  centre  of  a  Spanish  town,  with  a  few  miserable 
huts  ranged  around  it.  Sabanilla  has  no  Plaza.  Towns  here 
are  laid  out  by  authority,  and  are  rarely  irregular  or  straggling. 
The  Plaza  is  sometimes  paved,  and  is  generally  the  seat  of  a 
weekly  market,  almost  always  on  the  Sabbath,  so  as  to  secure 
a  better  attendance  on  the  church  on  that  day. 

Soon  after  leaving  La  Playa,  I  fell  in  with  the  mail-carrier. 
He  was  on  a  mule,  on  a  saddle  somewhat  resembling  a  saw- 
horse.  The  four  horns  were  very  convenient  to  hang  things  on. 
On  one  of  them  hung  perhaps  the  cheapest  pair  of  shoes  possi- 
ble. They  call  them  albarcas.  They  were  mere  soles  of  raw 
hide,  with  a  loop  to  put  the  great  toe  through,  and  perhaps  some 
leather  thongs  to  tie  them  on  with.  His  hammock  helped  to 
cushion  his  saw-horse,  and  from  one  side  projected  his  sword. 
He  was  bearer  of  the  weekly  mail  from  Barranquilla  to  the  cus- 
tom-house at  Sabanilla. 


36  NEW  GRANADA. 

In  all  my  ride  I  saw  nothing  of  the  river,  and  but  one  field, 
and  that  contained  nothing  but  maize.  The  first  symptom  of 
approaching  Barranquilla  was  that  my  companion  stopped  by 
the  road-side  to  dress  himself.  Next,  the  heads  of  palms  ap- 
peared, the  first  I  had  seen  in  my  trip,  except  a  low  species. 
Those  now  before  me  were  cocoas  growing  in  the  gardens  of 
Barranquilla.  Like  the  mail -carrier,  I  too  had  my  toilet  to 
make ;  for  the  lady  at  Sabanilla  had  taught  me  to  roll  my  coat 
up  in  my  handkerchief,  wrapping  it  in  diagonally,  and  tying 
the  two  free  corners  around  my  waist.  I  stopped  at  the  very 
edge  of  the  town  to  put  it  on. 

Barranquilla  looks  much  better  than  Sabanilla,  for  the  houses 
are  all  whitewashed,  according  to  law,  and  some  of  them  are  of 
two  stories.  I  did  not  at  once  learn  the  first  radical  distinction 
between  houses  as  tiled  or  thatched.  It  seems  to  be  thought 
that  the  best  possible  thatched  house  is  inferior  to  the  poorest 
tiled  one.  At  this  place  the  thatch  appeared  to  be  cat-tail  flag 
— Typha ;  but  farther  up,  it  is  of  the  same  leaves  as  the  Pan- 
ama hats — iraca,  Carludovica  palmata.  In  all  cases  thatch  is 
called  paja,  straw. 

I  came  up  mainly  to  deliver  letters  of  introduction  from  the 
Granadan  minister  in  the  United  States  to  the  governor,  and  to 
Seiior  Jose  Maria  Pino,  one  of  the  chief  merchants  of  this  re- 
gion. I  found  the  latter  in  his  warehouse,  where  he  received 
me  very  politely,  offering  me  a  glass  of  wine.  I  capitulated  for 
lemonade.  He  insisted  on  my  spending  the  night  in  town,  and 
furnished  me  a  guide  to  Mrs.  Creighton's  house,  the  only  de- 
cent stopping-place  in  town,  where  I  paid  at  the  rate  of  eighty 
cents  a  day.  Here  he  did  me  the  honor  of  a  call  in  the  evening. 

Barranquilla  boasts  a  private  school  and  a  public  school  for 
boys,  but  no  school  for  girls  that  we  could  call  one.  Even  two 
girls,  taught  in  the  same  house,  would  make  a  school,  according 
to  the  governor's  report,  which  states  the  number  of  female 
schools  in  the  province  to  be  about  five,  and  the  number  of 
scholars  some  twenty  or  twenty-five.  The  public  schools  are 
all  professedly  on  the  Lancasterian  plan,  and  the  variations  are 
deteriorations,  not  improvements.  A  great  clumsy  wheel,  five 
feet  in  diameter,  with  the  written  alphabet  on  its  circumference, 
is  the  most  useless  part  of  the  furniture.  The  teacher  here  is 


TERRITORIAL  DIVISIONS.  37 

a  young  man,  but  of  some  education,  and,  among  other  accom- 
plishments, can  read  a  little  English. 

New  Granada  is  divided  into  one  state,  two  provinces,  and 
three  territories;  in  1851  these  contained  one  hundred  and  thirty 
cantones,  subdivided  into  eight  hundred  and  sixteen  districts, 
and  seventy  aldeas  or  hamlets.  These  last  have  the  local  gov- 
ernment concentrated  into  fewer  hands  than  in  the  districts. 

I  give  the  modern  political  divisions  once  for  all,  and  the  of- 
ficers, etc.  These  need  a  thorough  study,  in  order  to  under- 
stand any  thing  about  the  country,  for  it  is  useless  to  try  to 
translate  some  of  them.  The  national  government  is  called  Go- 
bierno,  its  executive  Presidente,  and  its  Legislature  Congreso. 
The  provincial  government  is  Gobernacion,  its  executive  Gober- 
nador,  and  its  Legislature  Camera  Provincial.  The  executive 
of  a  canton  is  Jefe  Politico :  it  has  no  Legislature.  The  execu- 
tive of  a  district  is  the  Alcalde,  and  the  Legislature  Cabildo. 
The  district  is  Distrito,  formerly  called  Distrito  parroquial  and 
Parroquia,  or  parish.  Vice-parroquia  is  a  parish  dependent  on 
another  for  occasional  services  of  its  cura,  or  parish  priest,  who 
was,  till  September,  1853,  an  officer  of  the  distrito  as  much  as  the 
alcalde  is.  There  are  no  parroquias  nor  vice-parroquias  now. 

To  sum  this  up  in  a  table,  it  is  as  follows : 

Nacion  Capital  Nacional  Presidente      Congreso  Gobierno. 

Provincia  Capital  Provincial  Gobernador    Camera  Provincial  Gobernacion. 

Canton  Cabezera  Jefe  Politico   Jefetura. 

Distrito  Cabeza  Alcalde  Cabildo  Alcaldia. 

Aldea  is  a  partially  organized  distrito;  Territorio  is  a  partial- 
ly organized  provincia:  both  are  thinly  inhabited,  while  the 
Estado  de  Panama  has  conceded  to  it  more  independence  from 
the  central  authority  than  have  the  provinces. 

Barranquilla  is  the  seat  of  gobernacion  or  provincial  govern- 
ment for  the  province  of  Sabanilla.  I  had  a  letter  for  the  pre- 
vious governor,  and  called  with  it  on  the  present  incumbent, 
Senor  Julian  Ponce,  and  had  a  very  interesting  call,  but  de- 
clined his  invitation  to  dine  w,ith  him,  fearing  to  incommode 
him. 

The  gobernacion  always  gives  employment  to  one  or  two  men 
besides  the  governor.  He  was  appointed  by  the  president  for- 
merly, and  appointed  the  head  of  the  government  of  the  can- 


650 


38  NEW  GRANADA. 

ton  (jefe  politico),  and  he,  in  his  turn,  the  chief  of  the  district 
(alcalde).  Perhaps  New  Granada  is  governed  too  much.  The 
gobernacion  here  occupies  the  lower  story  of  the  governor's 
house. 

This  has  been  the  arrangement,  but  much  is  changed  in  the 
new  constitution.  The  cantones  have  no  legal  existence  or  offi- 
cers. Many  officers  appointed  are  now  to  be  elected.  Among 
these  are  the  governors,  who  are  still  to  be  the  agents  of  the  pres- 
ident, though  they  may  be  his  personal  enemies.  Thus  they 
may  interfere  in  any  national  matter,  as  mails  or  military  move- 
ments. I  fear  this  can  not  last. 

I  visited  also  the  provincial  prison.  It  has  a  hall,  with  two 
rooms  on  each  side.  The  keeper  (alcaide')  was  at  work  making 
shoes.  He  was  the  first  man  that  I  saw  at  work  on  land  in  the 
country.  If  I  saw  any  other  work  here,  it  was  sawing  boards, 
by  two  men,  using  a  rude  contrivance  to  elevate  one  end  of  the 
log  so  that  one  could  stand  partly  beneath  it.  The  prison  was 
not  very  full  nor  very  clean,  but  the  most  objectionable  feature 
was  that  the  windows  of  two  rooms  opened  on  the  street.  No 
prison  here  is  made  of  any  thing  stronger  than  rammed  earth  or 
unburned  bricks.  Of  course,  the  volition  of  the  prisoner  must 
have  much  to  do  with  the  duration  of  his  captivity  in  such  a  pen. 
The  laws  of  different  provinces  differ  as  to  whether  the  prisoners 
shall  be  fed  at  the  cost  of  the  province.  In  all,  they  beg  from 
the  windows  whenever  they  can. 

My  only  other  call  of  interest  was  at  the  church.  I  was  first 
conducted  to  an  old  priest,  who  had  a  sort  of  study  in  an  upper 
room  of  the  church.  He  assures  me  that  things  have  gone 
wrong  ever  since  the  King  of  Spain  lost  his  power  here.  He  is 
the  only  man  that  I  have  found  that  had  the  frankness  or  im- 
prudence to  avow  this  opinion.  As  the  Cuban  government  is 
now  the  only  remaining  specimen  of  Spanish  domination  in  the 
New  World,  we  can  not  easily  appreciate  too  highly  the  loss  that 
New  Granada  suffered  at  the  overthrow  of  the  power  of  Spain. 

We  descended  to  the  church,  my  hat  being  carefully  removed 
before  crossing  the  threshold.  It  is  a  vast  shell,  with  an  earth 
floor.  The  principal  altar  is  at  one  end,  but  along  both  sides 
are  placed  -secondary  altars  that  are  rarely  used  for  mass.  There 
are  no  seats  in  this  church.  The  priest  stated  that  the  town 


BARRANQUILLA.  39 

greatly  needed  a  larger  and  better  church,  though  this  is  but 
half  filled  even  on  special  occasions. 

The  organ  particularly  attracted  my  attention.  It  was  of 
parlor  size,  but  had  outside  it  two  huge  pairs  of  bellows  that  re- 
quire two  men  to  blow  them.  The  carpentry  around  the  organ 
was  rather  coarse,  but  it  was  ornamented  with  a  row  of  trumpet- 
shaped  pipes,  projecting  horizontally  from  the  front,  and  the  front 
row  of  the  remaining  pipes  had  faces  painted  on  them,  long  and 
narrow,  like  the  reflection  of  the  face  from  the  back  of  a  spoon. 
The  cura  has  an  assistant. 

On  my  return  I  had  quite  a  discussion  with  our  captain  as  to 
whether  I  was  expected  to  pay  for  my  horse.  As  he  was  a  pro- 
fessed hater  of  the  Spanish  race,  I  wished  to  prove  him  wrong. 
I  waited  the  result,  and  was  at  length  asked  80  cents  for  the 
bare  use  of  the  horse,  a  lazy  animal.  It  was  precisely  what  the 
captain  paid  for  a  guide,  a  horse,  and  his  maintenance. 

I  went  again  to  Barranquilla  by  water.  I  was  anxious  to  see 
the  Canal  of  Piiia,  that  connects  the  waters  near  Sabanilla  har- 
bor with  those  of  the  Magdalena.  I  agreed  with  the  patron,  or 
captain  of  a  bongo,  or  gigantic  canoe,  to  take  me  there  for  $120. 
The  bongo  was  loaded  with  goods  from  the  custom-house  for 
some  merchant  in  Barranquilla.  It  had  a  little  piece  of  deck  at 
the  stern,  but  the  only  protection  of  the  goods  from  the  weather 
was  some  dry  hides  that  were  spread  over  them.  The  crew  con- 
sisted of  a  huge  black  man,  who  was  patron,  another  a  little  black- 
er and  smaller,  and  a  mulatto.  The  patron  had  a  little  naked  son 
on  board.  The  ordinary  watermen  are  called  bogas. 

We  pushed  off  from  the  custom-house  wharf.  The  only  means 
of  moving  the  bongo,  besides  the  patron's  paddle  (canalete),  were 
long  poles  (palanca),  to  which  a  fork  of  a  different  wood  was 
tied,  and  smaller  poles,  to  which  a  hook  (gancha)  had  been  tied 
in  the  same  way.  The  boga  applies  the  fork  of  the  palanca  to 
the  muddy  bottom,  and  the  other  end  to  the  naked  chest  where 
it  joins  the  shoulder,  and  thus  gives  motion  to  the  boat  by  walk- 
ing toward  the  stern.  The  rate  may  be  considered  nearly  three 
miles  an  hour.  We  soon  arrived  at  Sabanilla.  At  the  cus- 
tom-house the  bongo  can  come  up  to  the  wharf,  even  when  fully 
loaded,  and  drawing,  perhaps,  three  feet  of  water,  but  here  we 
could  only  come  within  eight  feet  of  the  end.  I  went  through 


40  NEW  GRANADA. 

the  town  for  a  ripe  plantain  to  eke  out  my  supper,  but  in  vain. 
There  was  not  one  in  town.  I  then  returned  to  the  bongo.  To 
go  on  board,  I  must  either  wade,  go  in  a  boat,  or  on  the  shoul- 
ders of  a  man.  I  chose  the  latter,  and  had  my  feet  wet  for  my 
pains.  The  bogas  had  not  yet  appeared.  At  length  one  of 
them  came,  and  told  me  that  he  could  get  me  some  plantains. 
I  gave  him  a  half  dime.  He  returned  and  informed  me  that  he 
found  he  was  mistaken,  so  he  had  filled  a  bottle  with  the  half 
dime. 

At  length  we  pushed  off.  We  went  to  the  east,  and  even  a 
little  northward  of  east,  now  through  narrow  channels,  now 
through  broader  expanses  of  water,  having  little  or  no  current 
to  contend  with.  All  the  way  on  our  left  could  be  heard  the 
roar  of  the  ocean  surf,  into  which,  farther  up  from  Sabanilla, 
boats  are  sometimes  carried  and  lost.  We  were  in  the  middle 
of  one  of  these  broad  places  about  10  P.M.,  when  the  anchor 
went  down  with  a  sullen  plunge,  and  we  went  to  bed.  They  al- 
lowed me  the  sail  for  my  bed,  pillow,  counterpane,  musquito-net, 
and  roof,  and  it  served  its  purposes  well.  Bogas  are  as  uncon- 
scious of  musquitoes  as  a  rhinoceros.  They  unrolled  pieces  of 
matting,  called  estera,  and  slept  on  them  without  covering.  It 
is  exactly  such  as  is  used  for  matting  floors.  They  wondered 
where  my  matting  was. 

When  I  waked  it  was  still  dark,  but  we  were  moving.  First 
we  were  passing  a  dark  channel  almost  overarched  by  trees.  At 
dawn  it  was  through  a  floating  meadow  of  tall  grass-weeds  and 
splendid  bulbous  flowers.  Later,  the  ground  grew  firmer  and 
the  water  more  shallow.  Then  we  met  a  boat  fast  in  the  chan- 
nel. There  was  another  boat  behind  ours.  Those  of  the  bogas 
of  the  three  boats  who  wore  any  clothes  took  them  off,  and  all 
jumped  into  the  water  and  pushed  the  boats  past  each  other. 
"And  this,"  said  I,  as  the  bogas  continued  wading  and  push- 
ing the  boat  half  a  mile,  "  this  is  a  constriction  on  the  main  ar- 
tery of  the  commerce  of  New  Granada !"  The  Canal  of  Pina  is 
cut  through  soft  alluvial  ground.  It  ends  within  six  miles  of 
the  sea,  and  might  be  deepened  sufficiently  for  the  passage  of 
steam-boats  for  $100,000. 

We  at  length  emerged  from  the  narrow  channel  into  the  real 
Magdalena,  broad,  rapid,  and  turbid  like  the  Mississippi  at  St. 


STAETING  OF  STEAMER.  41 

Louis,  although,  even  above  this,  part  of  its  waters  had  joined  the 
ocean  through  chasms  of  the  embankment,  which  prolongs  its 
northern  bank  so  as  to  carry  the  river  many  miles  along  the 
coast,  as  a  mill-race  carries  water  along  the  bank  of  a  river. 

Now  our  difficulties  commenced.  The  poles  could  not  be  ap- 
plied to  the  bottom  of  the  river.  The  edge  was  of  floating  marsli 
and  drift-wood.  With  poles,  hooks,  and  the  patron's  paddle, 
the  problem  was  to  hug  the  shore  and  push  up  stream.  Repeat- 
ed efforts  often  were  necessary  to  pass  a  projecting  log.  Hours 
were  thus  consumed  in  advancing  a  few  miles  of  capital  steam- 
boat navigation.  At  length  we  entered  another  narrow  channel, 
and  an  hour  or  two  more  brought  us  to  the  steam-boat,  a  mile  be- 
low Barranquilla.  Leaving  the  bongo  there,  I  walked  up  to  the 
town. 

A  day  or  two  after,  I  witnessed  the  departure  of  the  first  steam- 
boat that  had  left  Barranquilla  for  a  month.  No  hour  of  start- 
ing was  fixed,  except  it  was  to  be  "as  soon  as  the  passengers 
had  got  on  board."  Accordingly,  trunks  and  packages,  on  the 
heads  and  shoulders  of  men,  were  early  seen  coming  down  from 
the  city,  and,  what  was  to  me  surprising,  four  or  five  carts,  al- 
though I  had  supposed  there  were  but  two  pair  of  wheels  in 
town.  At  length  the  passengers  were  on  board,  and  the  plank 
taken  in  at  8.  The  next  operation  was  to  take  in  a  few  fathoms 
of  chain  and  raise  the  anchor.  The  next  thing  was  to  turn 
round  in  a  channel  no  wider  than  the  boat's  length.  All  this 
took  some  time.  Then  came  the  waving  of  handkerchiefs,  as  the 
boat  moved  down  stream  for  some  hours  to  the  lower  end  of  the 
island  that  lies  in  front  of  Barranquilla.  It  arrived  opposite  the 
starting-place  a  little  before  night. 

The  only  difficulty  in  the  location  of  a  city  at  Sabanilla  is 
the  want  of  water.  The  natural  difficulty  must  be  much  less 
than  at  Cartagena,  and  it  can  be  easily  remedied  by  a  steam- 
pump  or  wind-mill.  The  climate  must  be  healthy,  I  think,  and, 
if  agriculture  were  duly  stimulated  in  the  region,  there  could  be 
no  lack  of  supplies. 

The  harbor  is  the  western  edge  of  an  estuary,  into  which  the 
Magdalena  empties.  Like  the  Mississippi,  this  river  brings 
down  an  immense  amount  of  sediment.  This  causes  a  bar  at 
the  mouth.  Here  it  meets  the  trade-wind  and  current  from  the 


42  NEW   GRANADA. 

east,  and  is  compelled  to  deposit  its  sediment,  not  at  right  an- 
gles with  the  river,  and  parallel  with  the  coast,  but  in  a  direc- 
tion determined  by  the  combined  action  of  river,  wind,  and  sea- 
current.  Little  or  no  fresh  water  passes  through  the  harbor. 
The  harbor  is  exposed  somewhat  to  the  winds  from  the  north, 
and  is  not  deep  enough  for  large  vessels.  In  value  it  is  inter- 
mediate between  those  of  Santa  Marta  and  Cartagena,  but 
might  be  made  far  more  useful  than  either,  were  the  Canal  of 
Pina  opened,  as  it  will  yet  be. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

CARTAGENA. 

Entrance  to  a  splendid  Harbor. — A  walled  City  and  a  finished  City. — Consul 
Sanchez. — Mule  Travel. — La  Popa. — Turbaco. — Arjona. — The  Dique. — Ma- 
hates. — How  the  Duke  did  &  Yankee. — Calamar. — A  Dance. 

THE  navigator  who  sails  from  Sabanilla  to  Cartagena  has 
both  wind  and  current  in  his  favor.  As  he  nears  its  white 
walls,  he  wonders  to  have  finished  his  voyage  so  soon.  He  has 
not  finished  it.  He  must  pass  the  town  entirely  to  reach  Boca 
Grande,  the  large  mouth  of  the  harbor.  This  he  can  not  enter, 
for  it  was  closed  up  by  a  costly  wall  completed  in  1795,  be- 
cause the  entrance  was  too  near  the  city  and  too  wide.  This 
entrance  they  now  would  gladly  free  from  obstructions,  but  the 
commerce  of  Cartagena  is  at  present  so  small,  that  the  measure, 
though  often  proposed,  has  never  been  attempted. 

Still  you  must  proceed  to  the  west,  and,  passing  the  Isle  of 
Tierra  Bomba,  you  take  in  the  pilot,  and  enter  the  Boca  Chica, 
little  mouth ;  and,  passing  between  two  forts,  you  are  in  the 
harbor  of  Cartagena.  Facilis  est  descensus :  it  was  easy  sailing 
clown  from  opposite  Cartagena  to  Boca  Chica ;  but  now  the  city 
is  out  of  sight,  and  you  have  the  wind  against  you,  and  you  find 
the  voyage  longer  than  you  thought  a  little  before. 

You  anchor  at  an  inconvenient  distance  from  town.  Will 
commerce  never  demand  decent  wharves  here?  What  would 
Boston  or  New  York  be  without  wharves  ?  How  would  Liver- 
pool dispense  with  her  docks  ?  You  land  on  a  boat-wharf  as 


CAETAGENA.  43 

free  from  commerce,  perhaps,  as  the  Battery  at  New  York;  pass- 
ing through  a  thick  wall,  you  are  at  last  in  Cartagena. 

It  is  the  first  and  only  walled  town  I  have  ever  seen.  I  look 
at  its  defenses  with  amazement.  They  seem  to  have  cost  as 
much  as  all  the  buildings  within  them.  A  good,  well-equipped 
railroad  to  the  Magdalena  would  have  cost  much  less.  First, 
here  is  an  island  entirely  walled  in,  except  that  certain  waste 
grounds,  that  would  have  made  the  wall  too  irregular  in  its 
form,  were  left  between  it  and  the  sea.  These  are  not  at  pres- 
ent worth  a  dollar  to  any  body.  Then  there  is,  southeast  of  it, 
another  island,  the  suburb  of  Jimani  (Gethsemane),  that  has  its 
wall,  its  gate,  its  defenses,  and  bridge ;  and  then  there  is,  out- 
side of  this,  the  detached  fort  of  San  Felipe  de  Barajas,  on 
Mount  San  Lazaro,  a  steep  detached  rock,  in  which  the  works 
are  cut,  unfortunately  attacked  by  Vernon  in  his  siege. 

I  can  only  speak  of  these  works  as  a  layman.  Next  to  their 
cost,  the  most  observable  thing  is  the  compactness  they  give  the 
town.  Cartagena  is  finished — has  been  so  a  long  time ;  it  looks 
as  if  it  might  have  been  a  hundred  years.  Eoom  is  precious 
within  fortifications,  so  the  streets  are  narrow,  the  houses  of  two 
stories,  and  the  plazas  small.  Withal,  there  is  an  air  of  neat- 
ness about  it,  notwithstanding  that  rain-water  is  sold  by  the 
cask,  that  really  does  one  good  to  see. 

Scarce  as  space  is  within  the  city,  the  walls  furnish  an  ex- 
ceedingly delightful  promenade.  Every  where  you  find  water 
on  one  hand,  and  the  old,  sleepy  town  on  the  other.  There  is 
another  fine  walk  on  the  beach,  between  the  walls  and  the  water, 
where  those  who  do  not  fear  sharks  too  much  may  take  a  nice 
sea-bath.  I  saw  little  use  made  of  either  of  these  facilities, 
perhaps  because  my  stay  was  so  short.  For  the  same  reason, 
I  saw  none  of  the  many  pretty  drives  that  there  are  in  the 
neighborhood  of  the  city.  If  you  are  to  go  to  the  interior,  you 
must  here  take  leave  of  all  wheeled  conveyances,  unless  it  may 
be  in  Bogota. 

I  love  Cartagena,  and  for  many  reasons.  Not  the  least  is, 
that  it  is  the  residence  of  that  model  of  American  consuls,  Ramon 
Leon  Sanchez.  Mr.  Sanchez  is  an  annexed  citizen  of  the  United 
States,  having  been  a  Spanish  subject  in  Florida.  Speaking 
both  languages  with  facility,  for  a  long  time  a  resident  of  Car- 


44  NEW  GRANADA. 

tagena,  an  experienced  merchant  and  a  polished  gentleman,  if  any- 
thing is  wanted  to  enable  him  to  serve  his  countrymen,  it  must 
be  the  will  to  do  so,  and  of  this  will  I  have  never  heard  of  any 
one  that  has  yet  found  him  lacking.  Never  had  I  more  need 
of  a  friend  than  when  I  arrived  in  Cartagena  without  a  single 
letter,  for  I  had  not  anticipated  a  visit  to  this  city ;  but  letters 
would  be  of  little  use  if  all  men  were  like  Mr.  Sanchez.  From 
all  the  letters  that  I  carried  to  South  America,  there  did  not  re- 
sult one  half  so  much  pleasure  or  profit  as  I  have  experienced 
in  the  bosom  of  that  excellent  family.  Mr.  Sanchez  has  long 
been  consul  here.  Were  the  office  a  more  profitable  one,  it 
would  doubtless,  ere  this,  have  been  taken  from  him  to  reward 
some  maker  of  stump  speeches  or  puller  of  wires,  who,  leaving 
his  family  and  interests  in  the  United  States,  would  hastily  come 
and  gather  as  many  dollars  as  the  length  of  his  harvest  would 
permit. 

Cartagena  has  suffered  numerous  sieges  that  I  can  not  stop 
to  enumerate.  That  by  Admiral  Vernon  in  1741,  commemo- 
rated in  Thomson's  Seasons,  is  the  one  that  will  most  interest 
the  Englishman  or  American.  The  last,  in  1841,  was  witness- 
ed and  endured  by  the  family  of  Mr.  Sanchez. 

I  took  leave  of  Cartagena  with  great  regret,  and  a  strong  de- 
sire to  revisit  it,  or  to  meet  elsewhere  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Sanchez, 
and  the  amiable  sister  of  the  latter ;  and  my  memory  of  those 
brief  happy  days  stands  in  strong  contrast  with  much  that  I 
have  seen  this  side  of  there.  To  one  who  arrives  here  inexpe- 
rienced in  wheelless  traveling,  the  advice  and  assistance  of  the 
good  consul  is  invaluable.  It  seems  incredible  that  your  two 
trunks  will  ever  be  mounted  on  the  back  of  a  mule.  You  are 
told  to  have  them  even  in  number,  each  pair  of  equal  size  and 
weight,  and  not  much  to  exceed  one  hundred  pounds  each  ;  and 
if  you  neglect  this,  dear  is  the  penalty  you  pay.  An  article  of 
freight  may  exceed  the  ordinary  limits,  and,  with  time  and 
money,  it  will  reach  its  destination,  but  to  the  traveler  such  de- 
tention would  be  worse  than  the  entire  sacrifice  of  his  baggage. 

Every  trunk  ought  to  have  a  water-proof  cap,  covering  it  en- 
tirely except  the  bottom,  or,  in  default  of  this,  it  must  be  en- 
cumbered with  an  encerado.  This  is  a  stiff,  sticky  cloth,  wa- 
ter-proof with  pitch  or  paint.  It  is  tied  on  with  a  rope  that 


PKEPAKATIONS  FOR  LAND  TRAVEL.  45 

you  do  not  pretend  to  untie  with  your  own  hands.  I  have 
paid  eighty  cents  per  trunk  for  encerados  and  ropes. 

You  must  own  the  ropes  that  tie  on  the  encerados.  The  pe- 
ons will  steal  them  if  they  can,  for  they  have  a  great  propensity 
to  stealing  any  thing  of  the  nature  of  string.  Nothing  would 
be  secure  from  them,  from  a  needleful  of  thread  to  a  cable.  The 
ropes  for  the  hammocks  and  encerados  are  called  incorrectly 
lazo,  which  means  running-knot  or  noose.  Ropes  of  raw  hide, 
rejo,  are  sometimes  used  to  tie  encerados,  and  always  to  tie  the 
cargas  to  the  mule.  These  ropes  are  furnished  with  the  beasts. 
Whip-lashes  are  made  generally  of  slender  rejo,  so  the  lash  is 
translated  by  rejo. 

Provisions  for  the  journey  are  often  put  in  cubical  cases  of 
nearly  two  feet  on  a  side,  made  of  leather,  and  lined  within ; 
these  are  called  petaca.  If  roughly  made  and  not  lined,  they 
are  atillos. 

Your  next  concern  is  to  secure  cattle — bestias — a  term  that 
includes  horses,  oxen,  female  mules  (mulas),  and  male  mules 
(machos).  If  the  number  you  require  be  five  or  more,  you  pay 
for  the  number  you  hire,  and  the  hired  man — peon — is  paid  by 
the  owner  of  the  cattle  ;  if  the  number  be  less,  the  peon  is  paid 
for  as  an  additional  bestia.  Thus  four  beasts  cost  you  the  same 
as  five.  It  would  be  difficult  to  force  them  to  make  an  excep- 
tion to  the  rule,  if  not  impossible.  The  peon  is  to  feed  himself 
and  his  cattle  from  his  employer's  purse ;  he  is  also  your  servant 
to  bring  you  water  to  wash,  hang  your  hammock,  etc. ;  indeed, 
the  limits  of  his  rights  and  duties  are  not  well  defined.  At  the 
ferry  you  pay  your  fare  and  that  of  your  baggage ;  he  pays  his 
and  that  of  the  cattle,  if  the  boat  helps  them  to  swim. 

Your  peon  can  not  load  his  mules  alone,  but  only  in  an  emer- 
gency will  call  on  you  to  hold  one  trunk  against  the  side  of  the 
animal  while  he  puts  on  its  fellow  and  ties  them  together.  A 
load  is  called  a  carga,  and  its  two  component  halves,  tercios. 
The  peon  throws  his  ruana  over  the  mule's  head  to  cover  his 
eyes  so  that  he  will  stand  still.  Then  he  puts  on  a  pair  of 
cushions  called  an  enjalma.  Next  he  brings  one  tercio  or  half 
load,  and  places  it  against  the  animal's  side,  where  some  one 
must  hold  it  while  he  places  its  fellow — companero — on  the  op- 
posite side,  and  ties  them  together. 


46  NEW  GRANADA. 

When  all  are  loaded,  it  will  be  prudent  for  you  to  see  the 
peon  and  cargas  safe  off  before  losing  sight  of  them.  You  need 
not  keep  with  them  all  day,  but  it  makes  a  great  difference 
whether  you  are  before  or  behind  them.  If  you  go  before,  they 
travel  rather  better;  but  it  may  happen,  if  you  pass  at  5  o'clock 
a  place  where  there  is  to  be  a  ball  or  a  frolic,  that  something 
will  happen  to  some  of  the  cargas  that  will  render  it  impossible 
for  them  to  reach  the  place  where  you  are  innocently  waiting  for 
them.  Your  best  remedy  will  be  to  believe  all  the  peon  says,  but 
watch  him  better  next  time  ;  and  count  yourself  happy  if  your 
bedding  do  not  line  his  nest  on  a  night  you  have  to  do  without 
it,  or  if  you  get  it  again  uninfested  with  bloodthirsty  parasites. 

You  now  pass  out  of  the  gate  into  an  open  space  that  lies  be- 
tween the  walls  and  the  suburb  of  Jimani.  This  you  cross  di- 
agonally, pass  a  second  gate,  moat,  drawbridge,  and  bridge-head, 
and  you  have  before  you,  on  your  left,  the  sharp  rock  of  San  La- 
zaro,  hewn  into  a  fort.  Farther  on,  you  have,  on  the  right,  a 
suburb  of  mud  and  thatch,  and  on  the  left,  the  high,  convent- 
crowned  hill,  La  Popa,  the  stern,  which  first  caught  your  eye  in 
coming  up  from  Boca  Chica.  The  convent  is  deserted,  and  the 
place  has'  been  the  seat  of  some  slack  military  operations. 

Unfortunately  for  Cartagena,  La  Popa  commands  its  defenses. 
To  include  it  would  be  to  double  their  cost,  already  a  hundred- 
fold more  than  it  ought  ever  to  have  been.  Any  detached  for- 
tification there  would  be  but  to  make  the  fate  of  the  city  depend- 
ent on  the  taking  of  it ;  so  it  seems  to  me  that  it  would  have 
been  better  not  to  have  fortified  Cartagena  on  the  land  side,  but 
to  have  invested  the  cost  of  the  walls  in  endowing  free-schools. 
I  was  sorry  not  to  have  visited  the  top  of  La  Popa,  but  I  do  not 
consider  that  I  have  yet  seen  Cartagena. 

Next  comes  a  pond  that  I  suspect  is  brackish,  La  Laguna  de 
Tesca.  Your  peon  will  tell  you  strange  stories  of  the  viviparous 
fish — manati — with  women's  breasts,  found  there.  It  is  the 
Manatus  Americanus,  a  mammal.  This  is  Herndon's  cow-fish, 
a  staple  article  of  food  on  the  Amazon,  but  not  often  caught 
here.  No  wonder  that  its  meat  is  not  like  fish,  for  it  is  no 
more  a  fish  than  a  seal  or  a  whale  is.  Near  here  I  saw  a 
pale-green  succulent  bush  for  the  first  time  in  my  life.  When 
I  saw  it  I  exclaimed,  "  This  can  be  no  other  than  Batis  mariti- 


TUKBACO.  47 

ma ! "  The  plant  is  considerably  diffused  over  the  Antilles,  and 
I  had  wondered  at  not  meeting  it  at  Sabanilla.  I  have  seen  it 
since  under  the  very  walls  of  Cartagena,  growing  in  company 
with  the  low,  straggling,  abominably  thorny  bush  that  bears  the 
burning  beans  or  nicker-beans,  Guilandina  Bonduc.  Batis  was 
first  described  by  Browne  in  1756 ;  but  the  true  nature  of  the 
plant  has  remained  an  enigma  up  to  a  short  time  before  I  saw 
it,  when  Dr.  Torrey  discovered  that  it  belonged  to  the  neighbor- 
hood of  the  Euphorbiate  and  Empetrate  orders. 

Farther  on  we  came  to  Ternera,  a  small  collection  of  houses, 
near  which  I  gathered  the  singular  flower  of  Hura  crepitans,  a 
large,  handsome  Euphorbiate  tree,  with  milky  juice.  The  beau- 
tiful fruits  sometimes  reach  the  States  under  the  name  of  sand- 
boxes. They  generally  explode  with  a  great  noise,  when  there 
remains  nothing  but  seeds  and  chips. 

Now  we  leave  the  flat,  level  ground,  and  rise  the  hill  to  Tur- 
baco.  Probably  no  spot  in  New  Granada  in  sight  of  the  sea  af- 
fords so  agreeable  a  residence  as  Turbaco.  Here  the  monopod 
hero,  Santa  Anna,  fights  cocks,  and  waits  the  moving  of  the  wa- 
ters in  Mexico.  Some  of  the  wealthier  inhabitants  of  Cartagena 
have  country-houses  here,  and,  among  others,  the  British  consul, 
Mr.  Kortright.  Here  ends  the  carriage-road,  and  you  feel  as  if 
you  might  also  add,  here  ends  civilization.  I  had  hoped  to  see 
some  mud  volcanoes  within  four  miles  of  here,  and  was  much 
disappointed  in  not  being  able  to  stop. 

Turbaco  is  called  nearly  two  and  a  half  leguas  from  Cartagena. 
It  is  easy  to  translate  legua  by  league,  and  call  it  three  miles. 
An 'old  Spanish  league,  indeed,  was  three  marine  miles  =  3. 459 
statute  miles,  but  other  leagues  have  been  used  from  2.6  miles 
to  4.15.  The  common  old  Castilian  legua  was  3.4245  miles ; 
the  present  legal  legua  Granadina  is  3.10169  miles. 

Unless  you  can  find  two  measures  given,  you  can  in  no  case 
be  sure  of  what  league  is  used.  I  follow  this  rule :  understand 
all  leagues  to  be  common  Castilian  ones  unless  there  is  evidence 
to  the  contrary.  A  league  is  an  hour's  journey  of  a  baggage- 
mule  in  good  weather,  with  an  ordinary  load  and  no  drawbacks. 
You  can  never  calculate  on  performing  more  than  this,  but  you 
will  find  a  thousand  good  reasons  for  making  less.  So  I  call 
Turbaco  eight  miles  from  Cartagena. 


48  NEW   GRANADA. 

At  Turbaco  you  turn  and  take  your  last  look  of  the  sea. 
Who  can  tell  whether  it  may  not  be  a  last  look  indeed  ?  So 
•long  had  I  dwelt  on  the  sea,  that  taking  leave  of  it  was  like 
taking  a  last  view  of  home.  To  gaze  on  the  fading  hills  of 
Navesink  was  nothing  in  comparison.  At  this  moment  my 
mind  reverts  to  that  last  view,  in  a  tropical  twilight,  with  a 
tenderness  that  I  feel  at  scarce  another  retrospect  of  all  my  life. 
An  American  is  scarce  away  from  home  in  any  spot  where  the 
tide  flows. 

A  long  night-ride,  in  which  a  French  gentleman  in  the  India- 
rubber  business  was  fortunately  my  companion,  and  unfortu- 
nately my  baggage  was  not,  brought  me  to  Arjona.  As  I  never 
saw  the  place,  having  entered  long  after  dark,  and  left  it  before 
daylight,  I  can  say  little,  except  that  it  has  a  plaza  and  quite  a 
number  of  houses,  and  a  posada,  or  stopping-place,  where  it 
was  quite  difficult  to  make  a  supper.  We  gave  our  horses  post- 
meat,  the  usual  treatment  of  hired  horses  in  New  Granada.  In 
plain  English,  we  left  them  tied,  starving,  as  we  could  do  no 
better.  A  man  who  lets  you  his  horse  never  expects  you  to 
feed  it  more  than  to  sustain  life,  and  the  letting  of  a  horse  is 
often  prudently  coupled  with  the  condition  that,  if  it  die  from 
any  cause  whatever,  the  loss  shall  be  yours.  I  would  not  like 
to  lend  or  let  a  horse  to  a  Granadino  without  this  slight  provi- 
sion for  the  animal's  comfort. 

Our  posada,  or  stopping-place  for  the  night,  was  a  tienda  or 
small  shop.  These  tiendas  may  be  considered  as  a  house  with 
two  rooms,  one  of  which  has  a  counter  run  across  it  before  the 
front  door,  and  behind  the  counter  another  door,  opening  into 
the  other  room — sala,  or  parlor,  as  I  will  call  it.  The  sala  is 
the  dancing-room  and  sleeping-room,  and  generally  also  the 
dining-room.  We  ate,  as  an  exception,  in  a  sort  of  shed,  which 
connected  the  house  with  the  kitchen. 

I  had  first  slept  in  a  hammock  in  Barranquilla,  and  I  am 
ready  to  pronounce  it  one  of  the  cheapest  luxuries  known.  To 
read  in,  by  day  or  night,  no  bed  can  equal  it.  You  can  vary 
your  posture  as  you  please,  on  your  back  or  side,  diagonally 
or  parallel,  and  you  never  find  it  hard,  and  I,  for  one,  never 
tire  of  it.  Many  complain  that  the  constant  use  of  the  ham- 
mock injures  their  chest,  tending  to  roll  them  up  into  a  ball ; 


THE  HAMMOCK.  49 

but  I  have  thus  far  experienced  no  such  inconvenience.  And 
although  they  say  that  there  are  in  this  country  bed-bugs  more 
formidable  than  any  we  know,  they  never  molest  one  in  a  ham- 
mock ;  nor  do  fleas,  with  all  their  agility,  manage  so  often  to 
take  up  their  quarters  with  you  as  in  a  bed. 

Apropos  to  fleas  and  bed-bugs,  I  propose  to  do  justice  to  the 
former  when  I  bring  my  narrative  up  to  Cartago  in  this  happy 
valley,  but  as  to  bed-bugs  I  have  not  seen  one.  The  Cimex 
lectularius  is  said  not  to  live  at  a  greater  altitude  than  5817 
feet.  Nor  have  I,  with  all  annoyances,  goats  included,  suffer- 
ed so  much  in  any  night  in  New  Granada  as  in  my  penultimate 
night  in  our  dear  native  land,  when  I  relighted  my  candle  in  the 
small  hours,  held  it  under  my  tormentors,  and,  to  use  the  words 
of  a  poet  whom  I  can  not  quote  well  from  memory,  I  "  gave  to 
grease  and  vengeance"  so  many  of  these  hateful  creatures  as 
nearly  to  extinguish  it.  For  the  convenience  of  more  unfortu- 
nate travelers,  I  will  mention  that  the  Spanish  call  these  novel- 
ties that  disturb  our  peace  chinches.  Query  :  Is  it  mere  coinci- 
dence that  the  same  word  (derived  from  cimex)  is  used  in  the 
Southwestern  States  for  these  same  insects  ? 

Beds  are  unknown  in  this  country  except,  so  far  as  I  have 
seen,  in  Cartagena  or  near  Bogota.  The  traveler's  usual  bed  is 
to  lay  his  bayeton  and  ruana  on  the  poyo,  or  bench  that  runs 
round  the  principal  apartment  of  a  house — the  sala.  At  the 
very  best,  he  has  a  square  frame  allowed  for  a  bedstead,  and 
nothing  more  on  it  than  a  thickness  of  the  estera — matting  used 
for  carpets — laid  on  a  raw  hide,  stretched  as  tight  as  a  drum- 
head. All  the  addition  your  host  thinks  of  offering  you  is  a 
red  pillow  in  a  pillow-case  open  at  both  ends,  trimmed  doubt- 
less with  some  sort  of  edging  or  embroidery. 

Our  bill  here  was  sixty  cents  for  our  supper ;  nothing  for  the 
hammock  they  lent  me,  and  nothing  for  the  posts  to  which  our 
horses  were  tied.  Early  indeed  were  we  on  our  way,  and,  had 
not  my  companion  been  a  baquiano,  as  they  call  a  man  familiar 
with  a  road  or  with  any  operation  (in  law-English,  an  expert), 
my  great  haste  would  have  been  bad  speed.  As  it  is,  some 
five  leagues  beyond  Arjona  represent  themselves  to  my  mind  as 
a  series  of  man-traps  and  horse-traps,  with  one  pond  of  the  most 
stupendous  frogs  I  ever  heard  or  heard  of. 

D 


50  NEW   GRANADA. 

The  first  thing  we  shall  recognize  on  the  road  will  be  the 
Dique.  So  they  name  a  crooked  canal  that  they  have  laid  out 
from  Calamar,  on  the  Magdalena,  to  the  tide-water  near  Carta- 
gena. I  imagine  the  day  is  past  when  such  a  work  could  great- 
ly benefit  the  commerce  of  the  Magdalena,  even  were  it  perfect- 
ed, as  it  never  will  be.  It  has  absorbed  a  great  deal  of  capital, 
which  has  shared  the  fate  of  most  Granadan  operations — for  I 
have  not  yet  learned  the  Spanish  word  for  dividend. 

This  opening  is  partly  natural  and  partly  artificial.  Its  cre- 
ation was  one  of  the  works  of  Spanish  policy  to  make  of  Carta- 
gena (a  defensible  place)  the  emporium  of  the  country,  instead 
of  suffering  a  city  to  grow  up  at  the  natural  outlet  of  trade,  but 
a  bad  spot  to  fortify.  It  was  destroyed  by  the  same  power  in 
the  war  of  independence.  It  has  been  partially  reopened  on  a 
shorter  line,  making  only  one  hundred  and  five  miles  from  the 
Magdalena  to  Cartagena.  Even  were  the  work  completed,  it 
would  not  probably  yield  enough  to  keep  it  in  repairs,  unless 
the  post  of  Sabanilla  were  again  closed  by  law.  From  near  this 
post  boats  still  go  occasionally  to  Cartagena. 

At  the  Dique  is  a  ferry,  where  every  passer  who  does  not  live 
in  the  province  of  Cartagena  is  obliged  to  pay  a  dime.  When 
the  canal  is  low  and  fordable,  as  now,  this  tax  is  called  peaje ; 
were  the  canoe  necessary,  it  would  be  pasaje ;  and,  were  the  wa- 
ter bridged,  it  would  be  pontazgo.  Its  chief  use  is  to  replenish 
the  provincial  treasury,  and  to  drive  off  commerce  and  travel  to 
the  rival  ports  of  Sabanilla  and  Santa  Marta.  These  tolls  were 
once  part  of  the  national  revenue ;  now,  with  great  imprudence, 
they  are  put  into  the  power  of  the  provinces,  and  they  often,  as 
in  the  present  instance,  use  them  to  their  own  detriment. 

Mahates  or  Mate,  as  they  generally  call  it,  is  quite  a  place, 
34  miles  from  Cartagena.  It  is  cabecera  of  a  canton.  It  lies 
on  low  ground,  and  the  traveler  who  thinks  of  stopping  over 
night  must  be  forewarned  that  the  Dique  keeps  them  well  stock- 
ed with  musquitoes.  At  Arjona  there  were  none.  I  found  a 
poor  dinner  rather  dear  there  too. 

At  Mahates  I  discovered  once  the  most  amusing  imposition 
by  which  I  was  ever  victimized.  I  must  tell  it  to  you,  though 
you  laugh  at  me.  Well,  at  nine  o'clock  one  night,  I  leaped  off 
a  steam-boat  that  was  about  making  fast  at  Calamar,  on  her  way 


A  HORSE   STORY.  51 

down  the  Magdalena.  Breathless,  I  sought  Joaquin  Duque, 
with  a  letter  for  him  in  my  hand.  In  a  quarter  of  a  minute  I 
found  him,  put  the  letter  into  his  brands,  telling  him,  at  the  same 
time,  I  was  a  "  cabinet  courier"  of  the  United  States,  and  that  I 
must  be  in  Cartagena  without  loss  of  time. 

"  How  many  animals  do  you  need  ?"  he  asked. 

"Three." 

"Three  animals,  Catalina,"  he  said,  turning  to  his  wife; 
"  quick !  find  Lorenzo !" 

Catalina  ran  one  way,  and  Joaquin  another,  and  in  two  min- 
utes more  both  cattle  and  peon  were  engaged. 

"  Will  you  start  now  ?"  asked  the  duke. 

"  No  ;  but  at  three  in  the  morning." 

By  this  time  the  boat  had  been  fastened,  the  plank  put  out, 
and  leisurely  up  came  a  Congressman  on  his  way  home  from 
Bogota.  He  was  a  personal  friend  of  Duque,  and  they  had  a 
good  hearty  hug.  Then  came  two  more  Congressmen,  then 
three  more,  all  friends  of  Joaquin  Duque,  and  all  needing  ani- 
mals for  saddle  and  carga.  I  had  not  been  any  too  quick  in 
engaging  mine. 

I  hung  my  hammock  and  musquito-net  in  Duque's  house,  and 
slept  till  three,,  and  then  found  nobody  within  call.  Daylight 
came — six,  seven,  and  eight.  I  stormed,  and  the  Duke  an- 
swered presently.  The  truth  was,  he  had  so  many  animals  to 
get  off  that  he  could  not  find  enough.  Saddles,  too,  were  want- 
ing, as  many  of  the  travelers  had  brought  none.  He  dared  not 
offend  his  personal  friends  by  sending  me  off  before  them  on  so 
frivolous  a  pretext  as  that  his  word  was  pledged. 

But  animals  (horses  and  asses — no  mules)  were  assembling, 
and  I  took  some  strange  substitute  for  breakfast.  It  may  have 
been  an  enormous  quantity  of  chocolate,  with  boiled  eggs,  with- 
out bread  or  any  thing  else.  It  did  not  occupy  my  attention. 
I  paid  well  for  it — 20  cents.  Just  then  Duque  inquired  if  I  did 
not  want  a  gentle  horse.  I  replied,  "  A  gentle  horse  for  a  cab- 
inet courier,  forsooth !  Vaya  !"  Then  I  found  a  man  who  had 
a  carga  and  a  half  was  about  fixing  his  half  carga  as  a  sobre- 
carga,  a  middle  load,  over  the  top  of  one  of  my  light  cargas. 

I  called  out,  "  To  whom  am  I  indebted  for  this  present,  and 
what  shall  I  do  with  it  when  I  get  home  ?"  They  took  it  off. 


52  NEW  GRANADA. 

My  horse  was  saddled,  and  I  saw  a  peon  putting  my  bridle 
on  another  horse.  I  called  to  him  to  put  it  on  my  horse. 

"  I  know  it  is  your  bridle,"  said  the  duke-,  "  but  your  horse 
is  not  used  to  such.  I  will  give  her  the  bridle  she  is  used  to." 

I  was  too  mad  at  the  delay  to  notice  any  thing  else.  We 
were  off  at  9.  I  paid  $4  80  each  for  my  carga  beasts,  and  $5  60 
for  that  which  I  rode. 

Well,  at  Mahates  I  took  off  the  saddle  to  rest  her  a  bit,  and 
I  was  horrified.  She  was  a  walking  skeleton — skin  and  bone 
— minus  a  good  piece  of  skin  on  the  back. 

"Your  horse  never  will  reach  Arjona,"  said  a  by-stander. 
"  She  is  destroncada" 

I  know  of  no  English  for  destroncada,  but  I  knew  its  mean- 
ing too  well.  It  might  designate  the  condition  a  gun  would  be 
in  after  it  had  successively  lost  its  stock,  lock,  barrel,  and  ram- 
rod. 

Just  then  a  peon  of  Duque's  arrived.  He  brought  the  pleas- 
ing intelligence  that  one  of  my  baggage-beasts  had  given  out, 
and  that  one  of  my  cargas  was  some  leagues  behind. 

"Tell  me  nothing  of  my  cargas,"  I  replied;  "but  if  you  do 
not  wish  it  to  cost  Senor  Duque  all  he  is  worth,  do  you  look  me 
out  a  horse  without  a  moment's  delay." 

This  was  precisely  what  he  was  going  to  do.  The  price  of 
an  animal  from  Mahates  to  Cartagena  is  perhaps  $1  50,  and  bet- 
ter animals  at  that  than  at  Calamar  at  $5  60.  So  the  duke 
gained  some  $4  by  the  services  of  poor  Rackabones,  who  really 
had  gone  remarkably  well  considering  her  condition.  I  confess 
I  was  angry  enough  for  an  instant,  but  my  wrath  gave  place  to 
mirth  when  I  discovered  what  sort  of  "  bridle  she  had  been  used 
to."  It  was  no  bridle  at  all,  but  merely  a  head-stall  with  reins 
attached  to  it !  Duque  had  got  short  of  bridles  for  some  of  his 
friends  who  had  neglected  to  bring  their  own,  and,  not  daring  to 
offer  them  this  thing,  had  ingeniously  borrowed  mine. 

As  to  my  cargas  I  never  took  pains  to  inquire.  I  never  doubt- 
ed that  it  was  not  my  beast  that  gave  out,  as  my  cargas  were 
considerably  under  weight.  Either  they  selected  for  mine  the 
weaker  beasts,  or,  one  of  the  others  failing,  they  changed  him  for 
mine.  Now  I  have  told  my  story,  not  for  the  amusement  of 
those  who  sit  at  home  to  laugh  at  me,  but  for  the  benefit  of  any 


CALAMAE.  53 

poor  wight  that  may  have  to  follow  my  steps.  Let  such  "  avoid 
entangling  alliances"  when  he  is  in  a  hurry,  and  see  that  his 
peon  has  nothing  to  do  with  any  man  with  whom  he  is  unac- 
quainted, and  particularly  let  him  learn  to  be,  what  I  shall  never 
become,  a  judge  of  horseflesh. 

But  let  us  be  off  from  Mahates,  a  place  of  dear  dinners  and 
cheap  horses.  We  enter  next  a  rolling  country,  covered  with 
wood  all  the  way  to  Arroyo  Hondo.  Here  we  see  the  moro,  the 
fustic  of  the  Magdalena.  It  is,  I  suppose,  Morus  tinctoria — a 
small  tree.  Sections  of  the  trunk  are  put  on  mules  and  carried 
to  the  Magdalena. 

Arroyo  Hondo  is  not  worthy  of  the  name  of  a  village ;  but 
the  remaining  cluster  of  houses,  bearing  the  lovely  name  of  Sapo 
(toad),  is  altogether  poorer  yet.  There  was  not  another  house 
till  we  came  to  Calamar.  We  are  now  on  level  ground.  Possi- 
bly it  is  sometimes  inundated.  Here  again  is  the  Dique,  with  a 
bridge  over  it ;  a  well-built  lock  lifting  up  from  the  Magdalena, 
a  guard-lock,  and  the  river  itself.  This  last  cheers  us.  If 
we  can  live  here  till  the  first  steam-boat  comes  up,  we  then  shall 
have  a  respite  from  our  sufferings  and  fatigues.  But  I  know  of 
nothing  you  will  have  to  see  here  except  it  be  some  new  palms 
back  of  the  town,  and  the  Spanish  moss,  that  I  believe  to  be  the 
same  as  that  of  Mississippi — Tillandsia  usneoides.  They  here 
call  it  salvaje. 

Fortunately,  I  have  never  spent  much  time  in  Calamar,  but 
here  I  witnessed  the  drollest  dance  imaginable  in  the  open  air. 
I  saw  a  light  down  a  street  running  back  from  the  river,  and 
heard  a  strange  thumping  of  a  tamborine,  accompanied  by  vocal 
exercises,  that  might  be  called  singing  or  squalling,  as  you  please. 
A  dense  crowd  readily  made  way  for  me,  and  I  reached  the  danc- 
ers. I  found  the  lights  were  on  tables  where  they  sold  cakes, 
sweets,  and  rum.  The  dancers  used  unadulterated  moonlight. 
An  old  negro  and  his  partner  were  in  a  most  interesting  atti- 
tude. She  was  dancing  ad  libitum;  he,  almost  inclosing  her  in 
his  arms,  but  not  touching  her  at  all,  was  following  her  motions 
as  he  could.  He  was  in  a  stooping  attitude,  so  as  to  bring  his 
arms  on  a  level  with  her  waist. 


54  NEW  GRANADA. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  MAGDALENA  STEAMEB. 

Steam  on  the  Magdalena. — The  Barranquilla. — Mouth  of  the  Cauca. — Lady  Pas- 
senger left. — Houses. — Bogas  and  their  Women. — Banco  and  its  Ants. — Its 
Priest  as  industrious. — Puerto  Nacional. — Fertility  of  Ichthyophagi. — San  Pa- 
blo.— An  opening  for  Practice. — Water-drinking  and  Drinking-water. — Geog- 
raphy.— Geographer  lost  in  the  Woods. — On  a  Sand-bar. 

STEAM  on  the  Magdalena  has  a  long  infancy.  Bolivar  arbi- 
trarily rescinded  the  first  contract,  giving  a  monopoly  of  it  to 
Air.  Elbers  ;  a  second  was  afterward  given  him,  which  he  forfeit- 
ed by  delays  in  the  execution  of  it. 

It  has  been  since  open  to  free  competition,  but  the  boats  were 
all  owned  at  this  time  by  two  companies.  The  Santa  Marta 
Company  had  the  government  for  a  partner,  and,  whenever  it 
overtook  a  mail-canoe,  carried  the  mail.  The  rival  interests  of 
Cartagena  and  Barranquilla  maintained  the  other  line,  which  had 
no  aid  from  government.  Both  have  since  gone  down,  and  an 
English  company,  which  put  on  boats  wholly  unfit  for  the  river, 
and  mismanaged  them  as  none  but  non-residents  could  do,  must 
probably  follow. 

Still,  the  enterprise  will  succeed  whenever  it  shall  be  put  in 
the  right  hands.  The  fare  up  is  $96  from  Barranquilla  to  Hon- 
da, and  the  returning  fare  $24.  Freight  enough  can  be  had  for 
several  boats  at  $19  per  ton  up,  and  $16  down. 

No  happier  sight  can  greet  the  eyes  of  a  traveler  in  a  dull, 
mean  village  like  Calamar,  on  a  flat  plain,  with  uninteresting 
vegetation,  than  the  approach  of  the  steamer  he  is  waiting  for. 
The  little  naked  urchins,  clothed  in  their  own  skins  of  nankeen 
variegated  with  dirt,  shout  "  Vapor  T  the  women  get  their  bot- 
tles ready,  and  the  lords  of  creation  slowly  rise  from  a  recum- 
bent posture  and  walk  down  to  the  bank. 

It  fell  to  my  lot  to  be  passenger  in  the  Barranquilla,  then  un- 
der the  command  of  Captain  Chapman,  an  experienced  navigator 
of  the  sea  with  sails,  but  little  versed  in  river  craft.  Like  the 


THE  BOAT.  55 

Mississippi  boats,  those  of  the  Magdalena  have  but  one  story  for 
passengers.  The  deck  belongs  to  the  engineers,  firemen,  and 
bogas.  These  last  make  capital  deck-hands.  Their  chief  is  call- 
ed contramaestro ;  ours  bore  the  name  of  Pedro,  and  a  strange 
combination  he  was  of  savage  and  civilized  man.  He  could  talk 
a  little  English.  You  are  at  once  brought  in  contact  with  him, 
as  he  takes  charge  of  the  baggage,  all  of  which  he  will  put  in 
his  hold.  As  a  particular  favor  from  Captain  Chapman,  mine 
was  rescued  from  his  clutches  and  carried  up  to  the  cabin. 

You  should  be  aware  of  this  arrangement  of  your  baggage  be- 
fore entering  the  boat.  It  will  often  be  nearly  as  much  as  a 
thing  is  worth  to  get  it  out  of  a  trunk  in  a  hold  that  has  only  a 
notched  timber,  at  most,  for  a  ladder.  If  there  be  much  baggage 
— and  every  man  has  a  right  to  two  cargas,  four  trunks — yours 
may  be  deeply  buried  up  sometimes,  and  moved  about,  from 
time  to  time,  as  unfortunate  passengers,  seething  in  that  damp, 
dark  oven,  with  a  dim  light,  tumble  it  over  in  search  of  some 
stray  trunk.  These  visits  to  the  bodega,  as  they  call  the  hold, 
are  terrible.  You  are  covered  with  perspiration,  and  ready  to 
drop,  and  at  length  make  up  your  mind  to  do  without  the  most 
indispensable  articles  rather  than  go  to  that  purgatory  for  them. 

The  Manzanares  has  a  ladies'  cabin  on  the  same  floor  as  the 
deck,  and,  if  there  are  ladies  there,  they  remain  by  themselves, 
and  eat  with  the  gentlemen  of  their  company.  The  Barran- 
quilla  has  a  little  triangular  space  at  the  stern  that  bears  the 
name  of  ladies'  cabin.  It  is  very  small  indeed,  but,  as  they  have 
very  rarely  any  female  passengers,  they  make  it  answer.  We 
had  only  two  little  girls  and  their  servant,  and  these  slept  in 
the  principal  cabin.  There  are  no  berths.  They  would  impede 
the  circulation  of  air.  They  give  you  a  cot-bedstead,  and,  if 
you  need  any  bedding,  you  will  probably  have  it  with  you.  In 
a  large  boatful  there  will  always  be  some  scrambling  for  the  best 
places,  and,  if  the  captain  does  not  interfere  actively,  the  whole 
cabin  will  be  obstructed  by  beds  soon  after  6.  The  rule  is  not 
to  locate  any  beds  before  8.  I  hung  my  hammock,  with  its  mus- 
quito-net,  and  had  a  very  comfortable  night's  rest.  The  mus- 
quito-net  of  a  hammock  is  a  large  bag  inverted,  with  a  couple  of 
sleeves  for  the  cords  of  the  hammock  to  pass  through. 

We  are  early  risers  on  steamers.     We  first  roll  up  our  bed- 


56  NEW  GRANADA. 

ding,  and  put  it  where  it  will  not  be  in  danger  of  being  disturb- 
ed. An  attendant  takes  away  the  cot.  Next  comes,  with  us, 
the  washing ;  but  the  Granadinos  are  not  in  a  hurry  for  this  op- 
eration, nor  is  it  always  essential  to  them.  It  is  a  little  diffi- 
cult to  get  water,  and  often  more  so  to  obtain  a  towel,  here  not 
called  toatta,  but  only  pano  de  manos~  They  are  generally 
made  of  sheeting,  but  are  embroidered  with  red  at  the  ends. 

Tou  are  next  invited  to  take  a  drink  of  anisado.  Omitting 
the  d  in  words  terminating  in  ado,  they  unite  the  a  and  o  into 
a  diphthong  like  ou  in  thou.  Anisado  is  thus  clipped  into  an- 
isdu.  It  is  a  sort  of  rum,  distilled,  I  am  told,  from  the  seed  of 
Anethum  Foeniculum,  called  anis.  It  is  much  used  on  the 
Magdalena.  It  takes  the  place  of  a  cup  of  chocolate,  which  is 
not  easily  prepared  on  board  at  this  hour.  I  have  seen  coffee 
used  as  a  better  substitute. 

Breakfast  comes  about  10.  It  is  spread  in  a  small  space  be- 
tween the  cabin  and  the  captain's  house,  that  has  a  roof  over  it, 
but  is  open  at  the  sides.  Among  other  luxuries,  they  put  on 
the  table  some  square  soda-biscuit,  and  butter,  that  is  eagerly 
dipped  out  with  spoons  by  persons  who  scarcely  know  the  arti- 
cle by  name.  It  is  universally  called,  in  New  Granada,  mante- 
quilla,  a  diminutive  of  manteca,  its  lawful  name,  here  reserved 
entirely  for  lard.  There  is  an  infinite  variety  of  stews,  of  beef, 
kid,  fowl,  etc.  The  most  essential  vegetable  with  me  was  rice, 
for  plantains  were  dealt  out  to  us  with  a  very  sparing  hand, 
while  the  bogas  were  denied  rice  and  bread  altogether,  and  com- 
pelled to  eat  plantains. 

It  was  interesting  to  see  the  bogas  preparing  their  dinner. 
The  beef  they  used  is  cut  up,  when  on  the  carcass  of  the  ox, 
into  ropes  of  meat,  that  are  rubbed  in  salt,  and  hung  on  a  pole 
to  dry.  This  they  call  tasajo,  and  a  pile  of  it  is  enough  to  sick- 
en one  by  the  mere  sight  of  it.  This  they  cut  up  in  pieces, 
and  stewed  in  a  large  iron  pot  mounted  on  three  stones  on  a  fire 
built  on  deck.  Three  stones  thus  arranged — tulpas — are  the 
ordinary  fire-place  of  the  peasantry  here ;  in  a  boat  they  are, 
of  course,  placed  on  a  box  of  earth.  They  threw  in  pieces  of 
green  plantain  till  the  disgusting  broth  threatened  to  run  over. 
When  done,  they  used  the  carapax  of  a  turtle  for  a  platter,  and 
dipped  out  the  mess,  and  attacked  it  with  fingers  and  wooden 


BOGAS'  DINNER.  57 

spoons,  till  soon  they  would  be  scraping  the  ribs  of  the  turtle. 
Nothing  could  sicken  me  more  unless  it  were  a  cannibal  feast ; 
but  one  of  the  passengers  told  me  he  would  rather  have  a  part 
of  their  dinner  than  of  ours. 

Fish  is  a  popular  food  here,  but  seen  rarely  on  the  boat ;  it  is 
too  cheap.  On  the  rivers  it  is  only  surpassed  in  cheapness  by 
plantains.  It  is  supposed,  contrary  to  the  opinions  of  Dr. 
Mussey,  that  fish-eating  tends  to  increase  the  population.  The 
captain  showed  me  a  passenger,  a  resident  of  Remolino,  who 
looked  as  if  he  might  live  to  see  his  progeny  greatly  increase, 
telling  me  that  he  had  already  some  twenty  children  by  the 
same  wife,  and  that  this  fecundity  was  owing  to  the  ichthyopha- 
gous habits  of  the  family  ! 

We  have  not  yet  been  over  the  whole  boat.  The  captain's 
house  is  a  little  room,  with  two  little  closets,  between  the  dining 
space  and  the  chimney.  The  dining  space  would  accommodate 
about  twenty,  but  they  seldom  have  so  many  passengers. 
There  is  a  considerable  space  of  open  air  around  the  chimney, 
and  then  succeeds  the  pilot-house.  The  pilots  are  picked  out 
from  among  the  bogas,  and  are  utterly  incompetent  for  their 
duties.  The  captain  and  the  engineer  divide  the  pilot's  respon- 
sibility between  them.  The  pilots  are  chosen  because  they 
know  the  river,  its  rocks  and  channel,  but  the  engineer  keeps  a 
look-out,  and  stops  and  reverses  without  waiting  for  orders  to 
do  so.  Forward  of  the  pilot-house  is  a  large  space  covered  with 
awning:  this  is  the  general  sitting-room  of  the  passengers. 
They  sometimes  annoy  the  pilot  by  cutting  off  his  look-out,  or, 
rather,  he  annoys  them  by  calling  on  them  to  move. 

The  engineer  has  a  little  house  of  his  own  down  on  deck. 
His  name  was  Salt,  and  he  was  a  man  far  superior  to  what  we 
expect  of  such  a  post.  On  another  boat,  whenever  it  was  lying 
still,  we  had  the  pleasure  of  the  company  at  table  of  the  Amer- 
ican engineer,  his  English  mate,  and  his  Irish  mate's  assistant, 
together  with  a  nice-looking  negro  that  was  employed  on  the 
boat  in  some  capacity.  The  captain  can  not  put  himself  high 
above  his  engineers  when  they  can  command  nearly  equal  wages 
and  need  equal  abilities  ;  but  they  err  exceedingly  in  taking  cap- 
tains that  have  no  river  experience,  good  seamen  on  merchant- 
men, but  who  have  never  seen  Council  Bluffs. 


58  NEW   GRANADA. 

Dinner,  when  it  comes,  is  but  a  repetition  of  breakfast.  It  is 
hasty  judging  of  national  character  by  the  conduct  at  the  table 
of  a  steam-boat,  especially  when  so  many  nations  are  represent- 
ed as  here.  I  have  seen  boats  on  Western  waters  with  as  much 
piggishness  at  table;  but  it  could  hardly  be  worse  served. 
Richard,  the  steward,  was  a  well-meaning  Jamaica  negro,  but 
his  two  assistants  are  very  stupid  Indian  boys.  I  heard  a 
passenger  scolding  one  of  them,  and  I  asked  him  what  he  had 
done.  He  replied,  "  I  called  for  a  knife,  and,  as  he  was  bring- 
ing it,  he  used  it  to  scrape  his  arm  with ;  when  I  complained  of 
that,  he  wiped  it  on  his  pantaloons."  It  is  exceedingly  difficult 
to  secure  good  waiters.  Ours  can  hardly  understand  good  Span- 
ish, or  make  themselves  understood. 

The  river  banks  present  little  variety.  It  seems  much  like 
the  scenery  or  want  of  scenery  of  the  Lower  Mississippi,  but  the 
water,  I  think,  is  never  so  low  as  to  show  such  elevated  banks 
as  we  see  there.  We  conclude,  then,  that  at  high  water  the 
Mississippi  immensely  exceeds  the  Magdalena  in  depth.  It  is 
also  wider,  and  its  width  is  more  uniform,  and  its  channel  far 
more  crooked.  After  this  lapse  of  time  I  can  recollect  no  dif- 
ference of  color  between  the  Magdalena  and  the  Lower  Missis- 
sippi. We  make  no  stops  except  for  wood,  or  so  rarely  that 
each  one  will  be  chronicled  as  an  event. 

On  Wednesday  the  boat  set  out  from  Barranquilla,  and  tied  up 
for  the  night  at  Remolino,  the  station  of  the  Santa  Marta  boats. 
They  call  the  distance  6  leagues.  My  rule  makes  it  21  miles  ; 
but  if  the  leagues  are  new  ones,  it  is  much  less.  They  attrib- 
ute the  smallness  of  the  journey  to  a  late  start,  and  delays  in 
getting  out  of  that  little  arm  of  the  river  on  which  Barranquilla 
stands.  On  Thursday,  before  reaching  Calamar,  they  came  8£ 
leagues,  say  28  miles.  . 

They  wood  but  about  once  a  day,  and  at  wood-piles  of  their 
own.  A  wood-agent  on  board  discharged  so  much  of  the  clerk's 
duties  as  he  was  going  up,  that  I  long  mistook  the  real  clerk  for 
a  passenger.  At  night  they  often  tied  up  to  a  bank  far  from 
any  house.  We  come  to  more  signs  of  cultivation  as  we  as- 
cend the  river. 

On  Friday  we  stopped  at  a  small  town  on  the  west  bank. 
We  found  here  the  head  of  the  distrito  represented  by  a  barn- 


DKESS  OF  PEASANTEY. 


59 


like  edifice,  with  a  roof  of  thatch  and  walls  of  sticks,  designed 
to  let  in  the  light  and  air,  but  keep  out  all  animals  as  large 
as  a  hog.  In  this  last  office  they  failed  for  want  of  a  door.  So 
I  saw  in  this  very  prison  a  mother  with  about  the  same  num- 
ber of  offspring  that  John  Rodgers  had.  The  grunting  parent 
of  little  swine  lay  stretched  in  the  abundant  black  dust,  content- 
ed with  her  lot.  Happy  the  prison  that  witnesses  no  sadder 
scenes !  But  when  a  biped  is  detained  here,  it  is,  of  course, 
with  his  locomotive  apparatus  locked  in  between  two  logs — the 
stocks.  So,  as  a  man  that  does  not  possess  "  the  thumb  and 
iirst  finger  of  the  right  hand"  can  not  vote,  a  man  that  has  lost 
both  legs  can  not  be  imprisoned  here  until  a  new  apparatus  is 
invented  to  hold  him. 

A  group  of  various  colors,  all  ages,  and  both  sexes,  and  in 
every  possible  stage  of  nudity,  gathered  on  shore  to  look  at  us. 
From  these  I  select  the  wife  and  child  of  a  fustic-cutter  as  a 

favorable  example.  She 
is  carrying  two  baskets 
of  ivory-nuts  in  positions 
which  the  reader  is  chal- 
lenged to  imitate.  The 
sleeveless  garment  that 
covers  as  much  of  her  as 
she  thinks  necessary  is 
called  a  camison,  an  aug- 
mentative of  the  word  ca- 
misa,  as  it  is  nearly  twice 
as  long  as  that  garment, 
which  would  be  useless 
without  another  garment 
to  eke  out  its  scantiness. 
There  would  be  more 
fidelity,  but  less  beauty, 
had  the  artist  colored  their 
bodies  according  to  na- 
ture, diversifying  the  skin 
of  the  little  one  with  the 

THE  FUSTIC-CUTTER'S  FAMILY. 

parti-colored  patches  with 

which  Nature  and  the  accidents  of  the  day  had  combined  to 
adorn  it. 


60  NEW  GRANADA. 

One  of  the  passengers  has  pointed  out  a  plantation  of  cacao 
chocolate-trees.  But  I  am  astonished  at  the  boundless  contigu- 
ity of  shade  that  is  interrupted  here  and  there  at  long  distances 
by  the  merest  bits  of  patches  of  plantains  or  cane.  When  the 
white  man  came  to  the  New  World  to  curse  it,  the  banks  of  the 
Magdalena  are  said  to  have  been  one  continuous  village  from 
Sabanilla  to  Honda.  The  cupidity  of  the  Conquerors  exterm- 
inated its  happy  inhabitants. 

On  Saturday  morning  a  passenger  pointed  out  what  I  should 
have  taken  for  an  arm  of  the  river  coming  in  at  the  foot  of  an 
island.  But,  though  the  color  was  the  same,  the  surface  was 
strewn  with  fragments  of  vegetation,  when  none  were  descending 
the  Magdalena.  It  was  the  Cauca,  escaped  from  its  long  and 
terrible  conflict  with  the  rocks  above,  and  now  pacified  to  the 
same  stately  gait  as  the  Magdalena  and  the  Mississippi. 

By  Saturday  noon  we  reached  the  head  of  the  island  opposite 
Mompos,  formerly  spelled  Mompox.  This  is  stated  as  40£ 
leagues  from  Barranquilla,  say  148  miles  in  four  days  (for  we 
went  no  farther  that  day),  or,  throwing  out  a  day  for  hinderan- 
ces  and  stoppages,  50  miles  a  day. 

Mompos  is  called  the  hottest  place  on  the  river.  Up  to  here 
some  little  influence  of  the  sea-breeze  is  felt,  and  above,  the  in- 
crease of  altitude  diminishes  the  heat :  here  the  sum  of  these 
restraining  influences  on  the  sun's  power  is  at  a  minimum.  The 
population  is  about  the  same  in  number  as  at  Barranquilla,  but 
very  different.  It  is  a  very  old  town,  and  a  very  religious  one. 
The  churches  are  quite  numerous,  and  in  a  far  higher  condition 
than  the  solitary  barn-like  edifice  in  Barranquilla.  The  schools 
are  not  correspondingly  advanced,  though  a  girls'  school  of  the 
higher  class  was  to  open  the  day  I  left  (Sunday). 

I  visited  the  cemetery,  one  of  the  best  in  New  Granada.  The 
iron  fence  in  front  of  it  is  of  Granadan  workmanship,  and  was 
much  admired  by  Bolivar.  The  inscription  over  it  signifies, 
Here  are  the  limits  between  life  and  eternity.*  There  is  wiili- 
in  it  a  very  small  chapel,  as  there  is  in  every  cemetery  of  the 
least  pretensions.  Most  of  the  best  tombs  were  brick  vaults, 
called  bovedas,  built  like  ovens,  with  the  foot  against  the  wall. 
Some  of  them  are  beautifully  set  off  with  miniature  steeples. 

*  Aqui  confina  la  vida  con  la  eternidad. 


MOMPOS.  61 

There  are  some  monuments  in  the  ground  also,  but  none  of  either 
are  of  a  high  class  of  merit. 

Mompos  is  a  town  of  jewelers  and  bogas.  It  stands  on  an 
island.  Perhaps  its  insular  position,  making  so  much  land 
accessible  to  it  by  canoes,  has  been  the  origin  of  its  greatness. 
The  steam-boat  landing  is  at  the  upper  extremity  of  the  town, 
above  the  head  of  an  uninhabited  island.  Farther  down,  in 
front  of  the  older  part  of  the  town,  is  the  ordinary  landing  of 
market-boats.  An  open  space  adjoining  is  protected  on  the 
river  side  by  a  wall  three  feet  high,  the  use  of  which  I  can  not 
conjecture.  It  is  the  market-place.  I  dread  the  description  of 
the  markets  of  New  Granada,  and  of  all  that  I  saw  in  this  I 
will  mention  only  the  fruit  of  the  Anacardium  occidentale,  a 
huge  tree  called  caracoli,  which  we  may  translate  cashew.  It 
is  a  kidney-shaped  nut,  with  an  acrid  milk  in  its  rind.  The 
stem  of  this  nut  becomes  a  mass  of  pulp  longer  and  smaller  than 
a  pear,  but  it  is  sour,  astringent,  and  disagreeable. 

At  this  spot  I  once  witnessed  an  exciting  scene.  A  French 
lady  was  going  up  the  river  in  the  steamer  Nueva  Granada  to 
join  her  husband  in  Bogota.  A  French  family  with  which  she 
was  acquainted  was  descending,  on  their  way  to  "la  belle 
France."  She  came  on  board  the  Manzanares  to  chat  with 
them,  as  the  boats  lay  side  by  side  all  night.  They  talked  in 
the  morning  till,  before  any  of  them  were  aware  of  it,  her  boat 
had  left  and  was  beyond  hail.  Poor  woman!  She  had  not 
even  a  bonnet  to  her  head  nor  a  dollar  in  her  pocket.  Two 
remedies  were  suggested :  one,  to  take  a  canoe  and  follow  after 
the  Nueva  Granada  with  the  vain  hope  of  overtaking  her.  The 
other  appeared  more  feasible — to  take  a  horse  and  ride  up  on 
shore,  as  there  was  a  slight  bend  in  the  river  above ;  but  there 
was  no  horse  at  hand.  Hundreds  became  interested  in  her  case, 
and  I  in  their  sympathy.  She  was  unknown  and  a  foreigner — 
nothing  but  a  passenger  left.  It  might  have  moved  the  mirth 
of  a  crowd  on  our  docks,  but  here  all  were  anxious.  For  half 
an  hour  nothing  else  was  thought  of,  and  all  eyes  were  turned 
up  the  river.  At  length  the  Nueva  Granada  appeared  round 
the  point,  and  one  universal  viva  broke  from  the  anxious  crowd. 
Whether  you  take  this  as  a  testimony  in  favor  of  poor  human 
nature,  which  has  many  amiable  traits  in  common  with  that  of 


62  NEW  GRANADA. 

gregarious  animals,  or  in  favor  of  Granadan  nature  in  particular, 
it  is  honorable  to  the  Momposinos. 

Here  we  saw  the  last  of  certain  loaves  of  bread  more  than  a 
foot  in  diameter,  and  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch  thick,  very 
white  and  tender,  but  quite  insipid.  They  are  cassava,  made  of 
the  starch  of  a  poisonous  Euphorbiate  root,  the  Manihot  utilis- 
sima.  The  root  also  comes  on  the  table  quartered  and  boiled, 
under  the  name  of  yuca,  but  is  not  to  be  confounded  with  the 
Liliate  genus  Yucca.  It  is  a  slow-growing  herb  or  herbaceous 
shrub,  and  is  nearly  a  year  in  coming  to  perfection.  It  rarely 
flowers,  and  I  have  never  seen  them  digging  its  roots.  For  a 
substitute  for  flour,  it  is  grated  and  then  washed  in  cold  water. 

I  went  into  two  gardens  in  Mompos,  and  was  surprised  to  see 
so  many  familiar  things.  The  most  universal  was  the  common 
balsam  or  lady's  slipper  of  our  gardens,  Impatiens  Balsamina. 
I  saw  the  Oleander  in  flower  and  fruit,  and  but  one  new  thing, 
a  Polygonum,  which  they  call  bellisima,  a  climbing  vine  with  a 
large,  permanent  petaloid  calyx.  It  would  be  a  splendid  acqui- 
sition to  our  gardens. 

These  gardens  were  the  courts  of  two-story  houses.  Most  of 
the  plants  were  in  pots  around  the  court  or  patio.  Perhaps,  as 
these  were  the  first  regular  houses  I  was  in,  I  may  as  well  de- 
scribe them.  A  house  with  but  one  entrance  from  the  street  is 
called  a  casa  claustrada.  That  one  grand  entrance  is  the  porton, 
and  the  space  that  leads  to  the  inner  door  is  the  zaguan.  The 
zaguan  is  always  paved.  The  pavement  is  often  of  brick. 
Sometimes  it  is  of  small  stones,  with  mosaic  figures  in  it  of  ver- 
tebra of  oxen  or  swine.  It  leads  into  one  corner  of  a  square 
space  within  the  house  that  has  no  roof.  In  the  Bible  this  is 
called  the  court,  and  here  the  patio.  A  walk — the  corredor — 
runs  entirely  around  it.  The  corredor  is  separated  from  the  pa- 
tio by  a  balustrade  called  pretil.  The  rooms  generally  open 
into  the  corredor,  and  only  the  front  has  windows  that  do  not 
look  into  the  patio.  If  the  house  be  of  two  stories,  the  stairs, 
which  are  of  brick  edged  with  wood,  are  placed  in  a  recess  in 
one  corner  of  the  corredor.  In  a  two-story  house,  casa  alta,  the 
lower  rooms  facing  on  a  street  are  either  used  for  stores  or  rent- 
ed to  poor  people,  and  then  they  have  no  connection  with  the 
patio.  These  families,  who  have  no  rights  out  of  their  narrow 


STEUCTURE  OF  HOUSES.  63 

rooms  save  in  the  streets,  are  a  nuisance  to  the  neighborhood. 
Poor  things !  decency  is  a  luxury  beyond  their  means. 

No  houses  have  more  than  two  stories.  The  casa  baja — one- 
story  house — is  more  common  and  more  convenient,  if  not  damp; 
but  the  casa  alta  is  more  pretentious,  and  is  preferred.  Anoth- 
er radical  distinction  is  into  tiled  and  thatched  houses.  Thatch 
is  cooler,  but  exposed  to  fire,  and  sure  to  decay  and  let  in  the 
rain  when  you  are  unprepared  for  it.  Tile  is  called  teja,  and  in 
the  plural  tejas  or  texas.  Thatch  is  called  paja,  straw,  because 
in  Spain  it  was  made  of  the  culms  of  grasses.  Here  it  is  gen- 
erally of  the  leaves  of  a  pandanate  plant,  Carludovica  palmata, 
which  bears  the  names  of  iraca,  jipijapa,  and  nacuma.  The  so- 
called  Panama  hats  are  made  of  the  young  leaves  of  this  plant, 
which  are  split  fine  and  dipped  in  boiling  water  to  make  the 
shreds  cylindrical. 

These  hats  are  generally  a  week  in  braiding,  and  the  fineness 
and  price  are  in  proportion  to  the  skill  of  the  braider.  The  av- 
erage price,  as  first  sold,  is  estimated  at  eighty  cents.  The 
finest  have  been  sold  at  $50,  and  even  $100.  A  hat  of  this 
kind  should  be  called  by  metonymy  thatch  rather  than  "  tUe." 
The  mature  leaves  are  sold  standing  by  the  proprietors  of  the 
ground  for  thatch.  They  spring  from  the  ground  on  smooth  pe- 
tioles eight  feet  long.  The  blade  looks  like  that  of  a  palm  leaf, 
but  the  flowers  have  a  striking  resemblance  to  ears  of  maize.  I 
know  of  no  warm  lands  in  New  Granada  where  this  useful  plant 
does  not  grow. 

We  left  Mompos  about  8  on  Sunday  morning,  instead  of  6, 
as  had  been  intended.  They  often  have  to  hunt  up  slack  and 
careless  passengers  who  would  otherwise  be  left.  Such  delays 
astonish,  amuse,  and  vex.  We  took  in  tow  a  champan — a  large 
flat-boat  with  an  arched  thatched  roof.  It  had  its  crew  of  bogas. 
Their  women  came  down  to  see  them  off.  As  they  sat  on  the 
shore,  I  was  struck  with  the  fact  that  their  skirts  were  all  blue. 
I  soon  found  that  this  color  is  almost  universal  in  New  Granada 
among  the  lower  classes,  whether  from  taste  or  from  the  abun- 
dance of  indigo  I  know  not ;  but  this  row  of  women  probably 
had  cause  for  looking  blue.  It  is  likely  that  they  had  danced 
all  night,  and  mayhap  attended  mass  this  morning,  and  now  had 
come  down  to  take  farewell  of  the  men  whose  last  cuartillo  they 


64  NEW  GRANADA. 

had  helped  spend,  and  who  were  now  taking  to  the  river  for 
more  money  to  be  spent  in  the  same  way. 

Before  the  day  of  steam,  it  used  to  be  impossible  to  engage  a 
crew  from  below  to  go  above  Mompos,  nor  would  any  from 
above  go  lower  down,  so  that  every  champan  was  delayed  at 
Mompos  till  a  new  crew  had  been  shipped,  provisioned,  and  got 
off  with  no  small  ado. 

A  little  above  Mompos  is  Margarita,  on  the  same  large  isl- 
and. A  more  paradisaical  place  to  look  at  I  have  not  seen  in 
New  Granada.  There  is  no  clump  of  houses,  but  a  long  street 
of  many  miles,  with  houses  on  the  west  side  of  it  fronting  the 
river,  and  buried  in  orange-trees.  In  the  middle  of  this  long 
succession  of  ruralities  stands  the  church.  To  add  to  the  beau- 
ty of  the  scene,  every  few  rods,  gathered  on  the  very  brink  of 
the  river,  were  groups  of  little  sons  of  Adam  and  daughters  of 
Eve,  in  all  stages  of  dress,  from  that  before  the  fig-leaves  to  that 
in  which  modest  painters  drape  their  figures.  Margarita  is  about 
fifteen  miles  above  Mompos.  The  population  of  the  district  is 
1827. 

More  than  thirty  miles  now  pass  with  no  noticeable  place, 
but  amazing  multitudes  of  children  at  the  water-side  under  the 
green  trees.  Then  we  come  to  Banco,  on  the  east  side  of  the 
river,  fifty  miles  above  Mompos.  Here  we  arrived  in  the  after- 
noon, and  stopped  to  wood.  A  large,  unfinished  church,  roof- 
less and  floorless,  filled  with  vegetation,  stands  as  a  monument 
of  ambition,  and  perhaps  to  date  the  decline  of  Romish  power. 

Here  I  saw  a  great  curiosity.  It  was  a  long  procession  of 
ants,  every  one  with  a  bit  of  green  leaf  in  his  mouth.  I  under- 
state the  matter.  There  ran  through  the  grass  a  well-beaten 
road,  like  a  sheep-path,  six  inches  wide — a  very  Cumberland 
road  for  ants.  It  was  thronged  with  busy  travelers,  all  of 
whom  were  hastening  from  home,  or  returning  with  about  half 
an  inch  square  sheared  out  of  a  leaf.  I  followed  on  to  see  their 
nest.  It  was  curious  to  see  their  broad  highway  passing  under 
logs,  stones,  and  brush-heaps.  I  followed  it  for  a  long  distance 
into  the  woods,  and  then  gave  up  in  despair.  These  ants  are 
called  arrieros — the  same  word  that  means  muleteer.  They  are 
a  terrible  pest.  It  is  thought  that  ant-eating  animals  generally 
reject  this  species,  on  account  of  four  strong,  sharp  projections 


ARKIEKO  ANTS.  65 

on  the  body.  They  can  carry  a  grain  of  maize,  and  I  am  sure 
that  to  load  a  whole  colony  would  demand  many  bushels.  Woe 
to  the  orange-tree  that  they  have  determined  to  shear  of  its 
leaves !  The  best,  if  not  the  only  defense,  is  to  make  the  trunk 
inaccessible  to  them  by  water.  Some  even  manage  to  surround 
their  house  with  a  stream  of  water,  and  others  are  driven  to  de- 
spair by  domiciliary  visits,  clearly  in  violation  of  the  Constitu- 
tion of  1843,  but  which  neither  parchment  nor  architecture  have 
strength  to  resist. 

I  was  once  sitting  in  the  evening  in  a  house  near  Tulua,  and 
fancied  I  saw  something  whitish  moving  on  the  floor.  I  ex- 
amined, and  found  a  broad  stream  of  rice  flowing  from  a  large 
jar  under  a  bed ;  each  grain  was  in  the  jaws  of  an  arriero. 
Long  before  morning  the  jar  would  have  been  empty,  for  the 
diligent  thieves  work  night  and  day,  without  even  stopping  Sun- 
day. The  only  hope  for  the  rice  was  to  hang  it  up  in  what  the 
sailors  call  a  true-lover's  knot  by  a  hair  rope.  In  the  end,  the 
jar  fell  and  broke,  and  the  enemy  bore  off  the  contents.  But, 
on  the  whole,  I  am  surprised  that  so  resistless  an  enemy  should 
do  no  more  damage  in  a  country. 

I  saw  where  the  ants'  highway  crossed  a  human  foot-path. 
Of  course,  many  of  the  little  folk  must  be  crushed  under  the 
feet  of  the  lords  of  creation.  There  their  green  loads  were  left, 
for  no  ant  picks  up  the  load  of  another.  I  found  that  if  the  an- 
tennas of  one  of  these  ants  were  removed,  he  no  longer  had  the 
power  of  finding  his  way.  Whether  it  is  by  smell,  or  by 
some  analogous  sense,  I  know  not,  but  it  is  not  by  sight.  I 
have  effaced  the  path  of  ants  with  a  little  chocolate  oil,  too  little 
to  impede  the  feet  of  the  insect,  and  only  for  an  ant's  length  in 
extent.  On  each  side  were  gathered  a  crowd,  at  a  loss  to  find 
their  way,  although  their  antennas  could  nearly  meet  in  the  mid- 
dle. At  length  some  formic  Columbus  set  the  example,  others 
followed,  and  the  way  was  re-established. 

But  let  us  go  back  to  the  boat. 

"  Do  you  see  that  handsome  young  man — bueno  mozo — lean- 
ing against  the  post  ?"  asked  a  fellow-traveler. 

I  looked,  and  saw  a  nice  young  man,  with  a  sort  of  stock  on. 
It  is  called  sotacuella.  It  is  a  plain  parallelogram,  about  two 
inches  wide,  more  fit  for  a  badge  than  any  thing  else,  and  is  of- 

E 


66  NEW  GRANADA. 

ten,  if  not  always,  of  what  is  called  worsted-work.  This,  and 
the  tonsure — a  carefully-shaved  spot  on  the  crown  as  large  as  a 
dollar — are  intended  to  be  permanent  marks  of  the  sacred  posi- 
tion of  the  wearer. 

"  Well,"  he  continued,  "  that  is  the  Cura  of  Banco.  Young 
as  he  is,  they  tell  me  that  he  has  twelve  children  that  are  known 
to  be  his." 

And  a  friend  that  passed  Banco  some  time  after  mentioned 
incidentally  that  he  witnessed  the  baptism  of  a  new-born  child 
of  the  cura  there. 

Let  not  the  reader  start  with  incredulity,  nor  turn  with  a  dis- 
gust unmingled  with  pity  from  the  natural  explanation  of  this 
phenomenon.  Let  us  bear  in  mind,  in  the  first  place,  that  his 
crime  here  is  not  disgraceful  in  an  unmarried  man,  be  he  cler- 
gyman or  layman.  Second,  that  the  anticipation  of  a  chaste 
marriage  is  one  of  the  main  safeguards  of  virtue  in  either  sex. 
I  was  talking  with  an  intelligent  man  on  this  point,  and  he 
laughed  heartily  at  a  story  I  told  him.  It  was  of  a  man  who 
had  reached  the  age  of  eighty  without  ever  having  been  outside 
of  the  gates  of  Bagdad.  The  calif,  professing  a  desire  to  have  a 
proof  of  the  tranquillity  of  his  reign  inscribed  on  a  tomb,  for- 
bade his  ever  leaving  the  city  on  pain  of  death.  Early  the  next 
morning,  he  sent  to  inquire  for  the  octogenarian,  but  he  had  run 
away  during  the  night.  Generally,  the  young  aspirant  for  the 
priesthood  is  no  novice  in  the  school  of  debauchery,  but  his  very 
vow  of  chastity  would  insure  its  violation,  if  he  were  so. 

Again,  the  confessional  is  the  cause  of  this  evil  perhaps  even 
more  than  the  celibate.  The  priest  is  to  know  the  sins  of  his 
flock  both  in  deed  and  of  thought.  If  he  suspects  a  timid  one 
of  passing  over  in  silence  what  she  ought  to  confess,  it  is  his 
duty  to  question  her,  and  hers  to  answer.  The  Protestant  pas- 
tor can  not  take  the  first  step  toward  undue  familiarity  without 
turning  his  back  on  his  professional  duty.  The  Catholic  priest 
may  nearly  have  completed  the  ruin  of  a  soul  committed  to  his 
charge  before  even  he  himself  is  fully  conscious  of  the  nature  of 
his  designs. 

Lastly,  the  position  of  the  female  is  by  no  means  hedged 
about  by  those  stern  laws  of  decorum  established  among  us. 
Her  sin  brings  her  into  no  lasting  disgrace,  no  total  exclusion 


MORALS  OF  PEIESTS.  67 

from  society.  I  should  judge  that  the  shame  of  her  position  is 
more  like  that  of  a  young  man  in  New  England,  or  possibly 
even  less. 

So,  take  it  for  all  in  all,  a  chaste  priest  here  must  be  an  ex- 
ceedingly rare  phenomenon.  It  would  be  scarce  possible  for 
human  ingenuity  or  satanic  malice  to  place  a  man  in  a  position 
where  his  fall  would  be  more  inevitable  or  irrecoverable.  I  have 
asked  two  persons  just  now  what  proportion  of  the  priests  are 
unfaithful  to  their  vow.  One  replied,  "About  99  per  cent."  I 
knew  him  to  be  a  friend  to  the  priests.  I  knew  that  the  other  was 
not,  and  his  reply  must  be  received  with  a  grain  of  allowance. 
It  was,  "  Of  the  secular  clergy  (parish  priests),  98  per  cent. ;  of 
the  regulars  (monks),  102  per  cent.  Thus,"  says  he,  "  the  ex- 
cessive licentiousness  of  the  monks  is  enough  to  offset  any  cas- 
ual instance  of  chastity  in  the  seculars." 

Nor  is  this  liberty  of  the  priests  always  ill  received  by  the' 
people.  A  woman  below  here  was  expressing  her  horror  at  the 
idea  of  a  married  clergy,  and  I  asked  her  whether  she  would 
prefer  the  Banco  priest  to  a  married  man  faithful  to  his  wife. 
She  replied,  "  Yes ;  for  the  sacraments  from  the  hands  of  a  dis- 
solute priest  would  retain  their  validity,  but  not  from  those  of  a 
married  one." 

In  these  days  the  cura  of  the  isle  of  Taboga,  near  Panama, 
has  been  making  arrangements  to  avail  himself  of  the  new  law  of 
civil  marriage.  He  has  lived  with  the  woman  he  wishes  to 
marry  many  years,  and  they  have  children.  All  this  has  ex- 
cited no  complaint,  for  men  consider  their  families  safer  with  a 
priest  that  lives  so.  But  the  first  step  toward  legal  marriage 
has  excited  a  great  hubbub.  Even  the  Panama  Star  came  out 
with  a  leader  in  English  against  him.  And,  to  crown  all,  the 
Substitute  for  the  Bishop  of  Panama,  who  is  in  exile,  informed 
him  that  he  would  depose  him  if  he  proceeded,  so  the  poor  couple 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  they  must  go  on  as  before. 

J  O 

I  hear  no  complaint  from  the  people  of  the  unchastity  of  their 
priests.  Probably  they  act  on  the  principle  of  ^Esop's  entangled 
fox,  who  would  not  have  the  half-sated  flies  driven  away  lest  a 
hungrier  swarm  should  open  new  avenues  to  the  vital  flood. 
Many  years  since,  indeed,  a  priest  in  Bogota  had  a  peculiar  pen- 
chant for  innocent  and  artless  girls.  When  he  was  found  to 


68  NEW  GRANADA. 

have  brought  trouble  into  five  or  six  of  the  first  families  of 
the  capital  almost  simultaneously,  their  indignation  broke  out 
against  him,  and  he  was  sent  to  Rome  to  be  judged.  When 
.sufficiently  penitent  or  sufficiently  punished,  he  was  sent  back  to 
xercise  his  sacred  functions  in  Cartagena. 

But  I  am  tired  of  this  painful  topic,  which,  however,  I  could 
not  honestly  pass  by  in  silence.  The  steamer  is  off  at  last  from 
Banco,  and  the  motley  throng  at  the  landing  has  again  given 
place  to  the  magnificent,  interminable  forest. 

Up  the  stream  we  go.  Settlements  become  thinner,  and  the 
groups  of  children  rarer  and  smaller.  At  last  we  stop  and  make 
last  to  the  bank.  The  forest  is  so  dense  that  there  is  hardly  a 
place  for  the  boga  to  set  foot  when  he  leaps  ashore  to  make  fast. 
Here  grows  an  immense  quantity  of  a  Heliconia,  called  by  the 
people  Lengua  de  vaca — Cow-tongue.  It  is  of  that  group  of 
families  including  the  plantain,  arrow-root,  and  ginger.  This  is 
the  most  frequent  geniis,  with  those  broad,  horizontal,  veined 
leaves,  which,  with  those  of  the  Palms  and  the  Pandanates,  are 
the  only  striking  marks  that  the  scenery,  of  which  it  makes  a 
part,  is  certainly  tropical. 

On  again  the  next  day.  All  day  we  go  without  stopping  ex- 
cept to  wood.  I  can  not  understand  how  these  fertile  banks  can 
remain,  washed  almost  weekly  by  the  waves  from  steam-boats, 
but  without  commerce,  and  nearly  without  inhabitant.  No 
American  would  have  anticipated  such  a  state  of  things,  so  do 
we  cling  to  the  maxim  of  political  economy  that  travel  begets 
traffic.  The  first  change  in  the  passenger-list  was  in  the  addi- 
tion of  our  names  at  Calamar.  Next  we  lost  our  little  girls  and 
their  nurse,  and  some  other  passengers,  at  Mompos.  We  may 
have  added  a  name  or  two  there.  Now  we  have  reached  Puer- 
to Nacional,  or  Puerto  Ocana,  as  it  is  often  called,  and  we  must 
suffer  some  losses,  one  of  which  I  shall  long  regret. 

It  is  that  of  Senor  Gallego  and  his  son  Ricardo.  Sefior 
Gallego  was  a  political  exile  from  Venezuela,  perhaps  Governor 
of  Maracaibo  under  Paez.  He  is  going  to  establish  himself  at 
Cucuta,  on  the  very  edge  of  Venezuela.  He  was  coming  from 
Cura9oa,  and  had  applied  in  vain  for  permission  to  come  the 
nearest  way  and  bring  with  him  his  family,  who  are  at  Mara- 
caibo. He  has  before  him  some  severe  land-travel — 40|  miles 


PUEETO  NACIONAL.  69 

to  Ocana,  71  £  to  Salazar,  and  100  more  to  San  Jose  de  Cti- 
cuta. 

We  stopped  in  an  open  field  at  a  distance  of  three  fourths  of 
a  mile  from  the  town  of  Puerto  Nacional.  There  is  a  deserted 
house  at  the  upper  end.  I  made  the  circuit  of  the  field,  where 
I  found  a  climbing  fern  of  a  genus  occasionally  met  at  home ; 
it  was  Lygodium  hirsutum.  A  little  way  above  the  field  wa,c 
the  mouth  of  a  small  river  that  determined  the  site  of  the  land- 
ing at  the  nearest  good  bank.  The  steward  (whom  I  intend  to 
immortalize  a  few  pages  farther  on)  had  started  in  a  boat  up  the 
little  river  to  the  town  before  I  was  aware  of  it.  I  walked  up 
half  way,  and  was  rewarded  with  a  number  of  curious  plants :; 
but  it  was  time  to  return  before  coming  in  sight  of  the  town, 
so  I  only  saw  the  port  of  the  '•''Port  of  Ocana." 

President  T.  C.  Mosqnera  states  that  he  has  repeatedly  seen 
the  thermometer  at  Puerto  Nacional  at  104°  hi  the  shade — the 
highest  he  has  ever  seen  in  New  Granada.  This  he  elsewhere 
gives  as  the  mean  temperature,  although  he  has  stated  86°  6'  a? 
the  highest  mean  temperature  of  New  Granada.  Codazzi  give? 
81°  for  the  mean  temperature  at  Puerto  Nacional,  which  I  think 
is  none  too  low. 

Here  would  be  a  fine  chance  for  an  industrious  negro  to  en- 
rich himself  in  the  ivory-nut  trade.  These  nuts  are  not  th< 
fruit  of  a  palm  nor  a  tree,  but  of  a  stemless  Pandanate,  with 
leaves  like  the  cocoa-nut  tree.  It  is  unisexual,  and  the  stam- 
inate  plant  is  represented  on  the  following  page.  The  fruit 
grows  near  the  surface  of  the  ground,  and  at  Sabanilla,  wher; 
most  of  it  is  exported,  it  costs  about  two  cents  a  pound,  and 
ought  to  sell  for  twice  that,  at  least. 

The  figure  placed  beside  the  plant  to  mark  its  size  is  a  na- 
tive of  the  banks  of  the  Magdalena  in  full  dress.  He  is  an  ap- 
proximation toward  the  mestizo — half  negro  and  half  Indian,  but 
neither  you  nor  he  will  ever  know  the  exact  proportions  in  whicl; 
the  blood  of  three  races  are  mingled*in  his  veins.  His  hat  i? 
called,  as  to  its  shape,  raspon ;  as  to  its  material,  de  palma 
rama,  or  cuba,  being  made  from  palm-leaves,  and  not  of  jipijapa. 
In  structure  it  is  de  trenza,  being  braided  in  a  strip  and  sewed, 
as  many  are  at  the  North.  If  you  disdain  to  call  the  rest  of 
his  dress  pantaloons,  it  must  be  called  tapa,  which  term,  howev- 


70 


NEW  GRANADA. 


IVORY-NUT  PLJLKT. 


er,  designates  any  quantity  less  than  this,  down  to  the  size  of 
half  a  fig-leaf.  In  his  right  hand,  with  his  paddle — canalete — 
he  holds  his  machete,  which  he  can  not  do  without,  and  which 
he  is  too  lazy  to  belt  around  him.  The  humble  attempt  at  a 
tassel  in  which  the  sheath  terminates  teaches  us  that  man,  even 
in  his  most  primitive  state,  loves  ornament. 

The  machete  is  not  for  defense  against  either  man  or  beast. 
He  cuts  the  tangled  vines  with  it  as  he  traverses  the  forest.  It 
is  his  axe.  This,  with  his  canoe,  lines,  hooks,  and  nets,  are  all 
his  stock  in  trade.  Add  to  what  is  here  enumerated  a  camisa 
:md  a  hammock,  and  you  have  his  entire  wealth.  He  wishes 


THE  CALENTANO.  71 

no  more.  His  fish  lias  cost  him  no  more  trouble  than  to  go 
out  and  dig  a  hill  of  potatoes.  His  plantains  come  easier 
still. 

Why  then  should  he  work  ?  Indolent  and  amiable,  he  might 
be  made  a  good  citizen  by  properly  taxing  and  educating  him. 
Armed  as  you  see  him  with  the  machete,  he  never  fights  unless 
driven  to  it  by  the  extreme  of  outrage,  and  then  only  in  a  mob 
— never  alone.  But  when  a  Granadan  mob  is  once  thoroughly 
aroused,  it  will  commit  great  outrages.  He  loves,  perhaps  not 
wisely,  but  too  well,  as  I  should  infer  from  the  census  of  1851, 
which  records  that,  in  the  distrito  of  Puerto  Nacional,  there 
were  32  married  women  and  67  births  that  year.  "  This  great 
fecundity,"  says  Ancisar,  "  is  to  be  attributed  to  the  vast  quan- 
tities of  fish  they  consume."  The  former  marriage-fee  of  $6  40 
is  said  to  have  caused  much  illegitimacy. 

Now  comes  another  entire  day,  with  only  one  stop  in  the  edge 
of  the  dense  forest  for  wood.  Above  here  no  steamer  can  safe- 
ly run  at  night.  At  dark  we  made  fast  to  the  western  bank  in 
tall  grass,  where  they  cautioned  me  against  snakes,  and  I  knew 
no  better  then  than  to  heed  their  counsel.  I  succeeded,  howev- 
er, in  bringing  down  a  stem  of  cana  brava,  which  should  mean 
wild  cane.  It  is  a  gigantic  grass,  the  stem  of  which  is  herba- 
ceous and  not  hollow.  Sections  of  it,  when  young  and  juicy, 
make  admirable  pickles,  crisp  and  tender,  having  no  taste  except 
what  they  derive  from  the  vinegar  and  other  condiments.  The 
ripe  stems  serve  to  make  fences  and  houses,  being  more  than  an 
inch  in  diameter.  When  in  fruit,  the  panicle  at  the  top  of  the 
stem  is  of  great  beauty,  particularly  when  the  wind  carries  all  the 
peduncles  to  one  side,  waving  them  like  the  streamer  of  a  lance. 
The  whole  height  of  the  stem  is  from  12  to  20  feet. 

I  have  said  nothing  about  the  alligators ;  but  now,  as  we  are 
soon  to  take  leave  of  that  abundant  and  interesting  animal,  I 
must  give  him  a  paragraph.  The  caiman  is  an  animal  of  the 
same  genus  with  the  crocodile  and  the  alligator.  They  infest 
the  middle  Magdalena  to  an  incredible  extent,  and  in  the  lower 
part  they  are  as  common  as  the  alligator  is  in  our  Southern  wa- 
ters. They  disappear  entirely  before  reaching  Honda ;  but  on 
the  sand-bars  here  there  were  sometimes  half  a  dozen  to  be  seen 
at  once.  Swimming  is  not  to  be  thought  of;  and  even  women 


72  NEW  GRANADA. 

washing  on  the  shore,  unprotected  by  a  fence,  are  sometimes 
carried  off. 

Musquitoes  also  reach  a  maximum  in  the  middle  Magdalena, 
and  disappear  entirely  before  reaching  Nare.  As  mosquito  means 
gnat,  I  did  not  learn  the  Spanish  for  the  larger  torment  to  which 
we  give  that  name  (mis-spelling  it)  till  the  seventh  month  of 
my  journeyings  in  New  Granada.  It  is  zancudo — long-legs. 

Next  day  we  came  to  San  Pablo,  one  of  the  most  considera- 
ble places  on  the  river.  It  is  about  seventy-four  miles  above  Pu- 
erto Nacional,  and  two  hundred  and  one  and  a  half  miles  above 
Mompos.  We  stopped  some  time  on  account  of  some  accident 
to  the  engines.  The  place  seems  larger  than  Banco,  and  far 
more  pleasant  than  any  little  place  on  the  river  except  Marga- 
rita. The  steward  here  attempted  to  buy  some  cocoa-nuts,  but 
the  owner  thought  it  more  agreeable  to  lie  in  his  hammock  than 
to  climb  for  them.  The  difficulty  was  arranged  by  a  boga  from 
the  boat  climbing  the  tree,  and  the  luxurious  proprietor  secured 
the  utile  without  sacrificing  the  dulcefar  niente.  I  drank  the 
milk  of  one  of  these  nuts,  but  it  did  not  please  me.  It  was  in- 
sipid, with  little  or  none  of  the  peculiar  flavor  of  the  nut,  but 
rather  resembling  milk  and  water  when  the  water  preponderates. 
I  might  have  formed  a  different  judgment  of  it  had  I  been  suf- 
fering with  extreme  thirst.  On  the  whole,  the  cocoa-palm — 
Cocos  nucifera,  coco — has  seemed  to  me  ornamental  rather  than 
useful  in  New  Granada ;  but  the  tree  should  only  be  judged  of 
by  the  sea-shore,  for  it  leaves  the  level  of  the  sea  with  reluc- 
tance, and  is  the  first  useful  plant  that  forsakes  man  in  his  as- 
cent of  the  mountains. 

Here  too  I  met,  outside  of  the  town,  an  abundance  of  a  fruit- 
tree,  smaller  and  more  slender  than  an  apple-tree,  with  a  smooth 
bark  like  the  button-wood  (Platanus  occidentalis),  and  a  fruit 
about  the  medium  size  of  an  apple,  crowned,  like  it,  with  the  re- 
mains of  the  calyx.  It  is  the  guava — Psidium  pomiferum — call- 
ed here  guayabo,  and  the  fruit  guayaba.  As  a  general  thing, 
the  names  of  trees  are  masculine,  and  end  in  0,  while  the  fruits 
are  feminine,  and  end  in  a.  Thus  an  orange-tree  is  naranjo,  and 
an  orange  naranja.  The  name  of  a  place  where  things  grow 
ends  in  al :  thus  this  guava  orchard  is  a  guayabal.  I  never  saw 
or  heard  of  a  naranjal,  for  no  man  has  orange-trees  enough  to 


GUAVA  AND  ICACO.  73 

deserve  the  name.  The  interior  of  a  guava  is  hard  pulp,  full  of 
seeds,  surrounded  by  a  harder  seedless  portion.  Both  are  eat- 
en, and  often  also  the  skin,  though  this  is  generally  rejected, 
and  sometimes  also  the  outer  portion.  There  are  other  Psidia 
here,  but  this  is  the  most  abundant  fruit  in  all  New  Granada. 
I  have  never  seen  it  cultivated,  nor  is  it  eaten  extensively,  ex- 
cept in  jellies  and  conserves.  Such  preserves  are  sold  put  up 
in  square  boxes  which  might  hold  a  pint,  and  which  looked  as 
if  they  might  have  been  made  with  a  broad-axe.  The  instru- 
ment used  in  their  construction  was  probably  a  cooper's  adze. 
The  fruit  is  eagerly  eaten  by  swine,  and  is  often  so  abundant  as 
to  be  of  importance  on  this  account. 

Another  small  tree  attracted  my  attention,  perhaps  the  only 
rosaceous  plant  of  the  low  country,  or  tierra  caliente.  No  En- 
glish terms  satisfy  me  for  the  four  gradations  of  altitude,  tierra 
caliente,  tierra  templada,  tierra  fria,  and  paramo.  The  cessa- 
tion of  the  cocoa  might  mark  the  upper  limit  of  tierra  caliente, 
the  banana  may  cease  with  the  tierra  templada,  and  barley  and 
potatoes  with  the  tierra  fria.  The  uncultivable  land  above  is 
paramo.  Now  there  are  many  blackberries,  the  strawberry,  and 
some  species  of  cratagus  and  spirsea  in  tierra  fria,  and  I  have 
even  found  a  blackberry  down  to  the  edge  of  the  tierra  caliente ; 
but  here  was  a  rosaceous  tree  belonging  to  tierra  caliente  only. 
It  was  Chrysobalanus  Icaco,  here  called  icaco.  It  is  a  plum, 
used  in  one  of  those  innumerable  kinds  of  sweetmeats  called 
dulce.  I  described  the  flesh  of  the  preserve  as  cotton  and  sir- 
up, and  my  hostess  suggested  that  a  third  ingredient  was  at- 
mospheric air ;  but,  after  disposing  of  the  sarcocarp,  the  endo- 
carp  easily  resolved  itself  into  three  valves  under  a  gentle  force 
of  the  teeth,  leaving  the  seed  in  the  mouth,  a  miniature  almond, 
on  which  alone,  I  think,  the  icaco  relies  for  the  popularity  it  en- 

j°7s- 
Just  as  I  was  leaving  this  tree,  after  our  long  detention  was 

over,  a  man  came  to  me  to  prescribe  for  his  sick  wife.  I  was 
glad  that  the  summons  of  the  boat  saved  me  farther  excuse ;  but, 
if  a  man  aims  at  popularity  here,  he  might  well  bring  with  him 
a  small  stock  of  medicines,  and  particularly  those  used  in  miti- 
gating the  penalties  that  outraged  nature  visits  on  licentiousness. 
Arrived  on  board,  I  found  a  new  fruit  to  attract  my  attention. 


74  NEW  GRANADA. 

I  should  have  called  it  a  crazy  orange,  but  it  bears  the  name  ot 
limon  dulce — sweet  lemon.  It  is  an  orange  with  a  thick  rind, 
green  even  when  ripe,  and  filled  with  a  copious  gummy  oil,  that 
obliges  you  to  wash  your  hands  as  soon  as  you  peel  one.  This 
alone  greatly  reduces  its  value,  and  its  insipid  sweetness  has  lit- 
tle attraction  for  Northern  palates,  but  people  here  value  them 
more  than  oranges.  The  carpels  separate  from  each  other  much 
more  readily  than  those  of  the  orange.  It  must  be  a  variety 
of  Citrus  Limetta  or  Citrus  Aurantium. 

For  some  time  after  leaving  San  Pablo  our  voyage  seemed  to 
be  without  events  to  chronicle.  Day  passes  after  day  without 
receiving  or  leaving  a  passenger  or  an  article  of  freight.  Once 
a  day  we  stop  for  wood.  Perhaps  the  space  of  an  acre  has  been 
cut  over,  and  may  have  been  cultivated,  but  has  again  run  up 
to  weeds.  Two  miserable  sheds — ranches — serve  to  protect  the 
occupants,  who  can  not  be  called  a  family,  from  dew  and  rain. 
A  part  of  a  raceme  of  plantains,  the  staff  of  life,  hang  under  one 
roof,  and  a  few  ears  of  maize  constitute  the  remainder  of  their 
store.  All  their  furniture  is  summed  up  in  a  few  coarse  earthen 
vessels  (perhaps  made  on  the  spot),  and  some  of  totuma  or  cala- 
basa.  This  last  is  a  huge  fruit  of  the  gourd  family,  and  has 
given  origin  to  the  English  word  calabash.  The  name  ought 
not  to  be  applied  to  the  totuma,  which  is  a  much  smaller  fruit, 
made  only  into  dishes  and  spoons,  all  made  of  half  a  fruit  or 
less ;  but  the  calabasa  needs  but  a  small  opening  made  into  it, 
and  it  is  cleaned  out  by  rinsing  with  water  if  the  orifice  be  too 
small  for  the  hand.  In  a  word,  calabashes  are  substitutes  for 
kegs,  jugs,  and  bottles ;  totumas  for  dishes,  bowls,  and  spoons. 
Ask  for  a  totuma  of  water,  and  they  will  give  you  what  you 
need  to  drink.  Ask  for  a  calabasa  of  water,  and  they  will  pro- 
pose to  lend  you  or  sell  you  a  calabasa  to  hold  a  supply  of  wa- 
ter to  take  with  you. 

Totumas  grow  on  the  Totumo,  Crescentia  Cujete,  a  tree  about 
the  size  of  an  apple-tree.  The  first  I  saw  was  at  Barranquilla, 
where  I  was  nearly  knocked  down  while  chasing  a  butterfly  by 
bringing  my  head  in  contact  with  a  fruit  of  nearly  the  same  size, 
which  had  escaped  my  notice  by  being  of  the  same  color  as  the 
leaves.  A  section  of  a  small  one  answers  for  a  spoon ;  bowls 
made  of  halves  of  larger  ones  are  sold  at  from  one  to  three  cents 


NARE.  75 

apiece.  In  Pasto  they  ornament  and  varnish  them,  and  then 
they  are  sold  all  over  the  country  at  a  much  higher  price. 

As  you  ascend  the  river  population  decreases.  The  villages 
grow  smaller,  and  you  forget  to  inquire  their  names,  even  when 
they  are  few  and  far  between.  There  is  also  a  sensible  diminu- 
tion in  the  proportion  of  children,  suggesting  an  infant  mortal- 
ity equaled  only  in  the  vicinity  of  still-slops  and  "  pure  country 
milk." 

Mountains  appear  in  the  distance,  now  on  one  hand  and  now 
on  the  other,  gradually  coming  nearer  and  nearer,  till  at  length 
they  are  seen  on  both  sides  at  once,  a  sure  indication  that  the 
alluvial  region  of  the  Magdalena  is  narrowing  as  we  ascend. 
There  is  now  and  then  a  bluff  of  thirty  feet  in  height,  but  I  have 
generally  seen  the  banks  of  a  height  varying  from  eight  feet  to 
two  or  three.  The  width  of  the  river  has  diminished  one  half, 
till  it  is  less  than  the  Ohio  or  the  Hudson  at  Albany.  The 
current  has  been  growing  a  little  more  rapid,  but  here  at  last  is 
something  new.  The  river  is  compressed  by  rocks  on  both 
sides,  and  for  a  few  rods  is  quite  rapid.  This  is  the  Angostura 
de  Nare — the  Narrows  of  Nare.  It  is  the  eleventh  day  of  the 
trip,  and  our  confinement  has  just  reached  the  term  of  a  Liver- 
pool voyage. 

The  river  widens  again,  and  soon  the  boat  enters  the  mouth 
of  a  smaller  river  of  clear  water.  It  is  the  River  of  Nare,  and 
we  make  fast  to  the  bank.  It  is  so  long  since  we  have  seen 
any  clear  water,  that  the  passengers  eagerly  seize  on  it. 

0  formose  puer !  minium  ne  credas  colon ! 

I  doubt  very  much  the  superiority  of  the  new  beverage.  I 
doubted  then ;  I  distrust  now.  Many  who  ascend  the  Magda- 
lena are  taken  sick  at  Nare  or  soon  after,  and  some  die  there. 
I  suspect  that  the  clear  water  has  something  to  do  with  this. 
At  all  events,  there  can  be  no  better  water  in  the  world  to  drink 
than  the  turbid  streams  of  the  Magdalena  and  the  Missouri. 
The  steam-boats  keep  their  water  in  large  jars  of  brown  earthen- 
ware, holding  perhaps  half  a  barrel  or  more.  They  are  called 
tinajas.  There  are  always  two  or  more,  so  that  the  water  has 
time  to  settle.  Sometimes  there  is  a  filter  made  of  porous 
stone,  holding  two  gallons,  which  lets  it  drip  slowly  into  the 
tinaja  beneath. 


76  NEW  GRANADA. 

The  luxury  of  cold  water  is  and  must  always  be  unknown 
here.  Deep  wells  and  uniform  springs  retain  the  average  tem- 
perature of  the  year,  which,  in  the  temperate  zone,  is  much  low- 
er than  that  of  a  summer's  night ;  so  the  earth  treasures  up  for 
us,  at  home,  the  coolness  of  winter  for  the  refreshment  of  our 
summer-heats,  but  in  the  tropics  this  resource  fails  us.  To  get 
cool  water,  we  must  ascend  the  mountains  till  the  air  becomes  so 
cool  that  the  water  almost  ceases  to  be  a  luxury. 

There  are  no  houses  at  the  mouth  of  the  Nare.  There  were 
only  a  store-house — bodega — and  a  wood-shed.  Both  are  since 
leveled  to  the  ground,  and  boats  now  stop  only  at  the  town, 
half  a  mile  or  so  above.  While  waiting  for  dinner  I  went  up 
to  the  town.  It  is  the  last  mentionable  place  before  you  get  to 
Honda.  It  is  a  desolate  range  of  mud  huts,  and  a  wretched 
plaza,  with  a  small  church  on  it,  as  usual.  It  is  all  the  worse 
for  having  a  back  street  and  cross  streets.  We  found  the  peo- 
ple dressed  up  because  it  was  Saint  Somebody's  day.  This 
made  the  bad  place  look  somewhat  better.  One  little  fellow,  who 
was  too  small  to  need  clothes,  attracted  my  attention  as  a  re- 
markably fine  specimen  of  a  frequent  disease,  said  to  be  pro- 
duced by  earth-eating,  called  jipitera  :  such  a  person  is  called  a 
barrigon,  from  the  great  enlargement  of  the  abdomen.  No  soon- 
er did  he  see  my  four  eyes  (spectacles  included)  bent  on  him, 
than  he  ran  bellowing  into  the  house. 

After  dinner  I  went  out  to  look  for  plants.  I  went  far  and 
found  few.  The  land  road  from  Antioquia  Medellin  and  Rio 
Negro  terminates  at  Nare,  or  at  a  depot — bodega — on  the  Nare 
a  mile  or  two  up.  The  boundary  of  the  province  of  Antioquia 
itself  crosses  the  Nare  some  distance  up,  extends  down  the  north 
bank  to  the  Magdalena,  and  follows  the  west  bank  of  the  Mag- 
dalena  down  for  some  leagues.  The  spot  we  are  on  is  in  Mari- 
quita,  a  name  which  is  a  diminutive  of  that  of  the  Virgin.  The 
provincial  Legislature  has  just  tried,  by  an  unconstitutional  law, 
to  change  the  name  to  Marqueta.  The  limits  between  Antio- 
quia and  Mariquita  have  never  been  settled.  It  will  be  seen  be- 
low why  I  wish  to  establish  my  good  character  for  geography. 

Well,  I  started  up  toward  the  Bodega  de  Antioquia  by  land. 
I  found  a  little  path,  impracticable  for  mules,  and  followed  it  a 
mile  without  finding  any  thing  worth  seeing  except  some  mon- 


IN  THE  WOODS.  77 

keys  scrambling  over  the  tree-tops.  An  awkward  chap  is  the 
monkey,  sprawling  his  five  long  limbs  (his  tail  is  prehensile) 
in  different  directions,  holding  on  by  one,  two,  or  more  of  them, 
and  reaching  off  amazingly  for  new  points  of  attachment.  That 
old  lady,  with  one  of  her  lovely  progeny  clinging  to  her  in  af- 
fectionate embrace,  tranquilly  imbibing  its  nourishment,  has 
no  scruples  of  delicacy  at  exhibiting  her  rarest  feats  of  climb- 
ing thirty  feet  above  our  heads.  But  bring  the  monkey  down 
to  the  ground,  and  chain  him,  cage  him,  or  turn  him  loose, 
and  you  make  him  a  chattering  idiot,  a  mischievous  fool,  and 
the  most  utterly  disgusting  creature  ever  made  in  caricature  of 
man. 

I  was  turned  back  by  the  approach  of  night.  I  had  returned 
nearly  to  the  boat,  and  the  sun  had  "gone  in"  so  long  that  it 
yielded  no  indication  of  the  points  of  the  compass,  when  I  sud- 
denly lost  my  path.  I  retraced  my  steps  to  a  spot  that  I  knew 
I  had  passed  in  going,  and  then  turned  boatward  and  lost  my 
way  at  the  same  point.  I  grew  alarmed,  for  night  was  on  me, 
and  my  pocket  compass  was  in  New  York!  Just  as  I  had 
made  my  third  attempt  to  extricate  myself  by  a  posteriori  in- 
vestigations, and  was  in  the  full  tide  of  speculation  as  to  the 
nocturnal  occupations  of  the  tenants  of  the  wilderness,  from  the 
musquito  to  the  "tiger"  and  "lion"  of  South  America,  I  saw  two 
of  my  fellow-passengers  gunning. 

How  came  I  lost  ?  The  path  probably  made  one  turn  that  I 
had  taken  without  observing  it.  Before  I  came  to  the  river 
again,  that,  too,  had  turned  in  the  same  direction,  and  when  I 
saw  it  my  error  of  meridian  was  confirmed.  In  returning,  all 
my  caution  was  aroused.  I  took  not  a  step  at  a  venture,  and, 
when  my  road  turned  again  directly  to  the  boat,  I  would  not  fol- 
low it  a  step,  for  it  carried  me  in  a  direction  opposite  to  that  in- 
dicated by  my  imagination. 

We  were  under  way  in  the  morning  with  a  diminished  num- 
ber of  passengers.  We  were  just  eight  men  and  two  boys.  A 
fine  view,  this,  of  the  passenger  business  on  the  main  thorough- 
fare of  New  Granada !  A  longer  interval  than  usual,  too,  had 
passed  since  the  last  boat ;  not  less,  I  think,  than  three  weeks. 

We  had  left  Nare  three  hours  behind  us  when  we  ran  plump 
into  a  sand-bank.  Here  I  did  injustice  to  Captain  Chapman, 


78  NEW  GRANADA. 

and  I  am  sorry  for  it.  He  was  a  good  seaman,  and  had  omitted 
nothing  he  could  contribute  to  the  comfort  of  his  passengers,  and 
to  mine  especially ;  but  he  knew  nothing  of  low  water  on  the 
Ohio.  I,  who  have  been  on  more  bars  than  I  hope  ever  to  be 
again,  looked  on  his  operations  with  perfect  amazement,  till  I 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  he  wished  to  stay  there.  Once  we 
were  fairly  afloat,  but  one  awkward  inanosuvre  fixed  us.  The 
next  that  I  saw,  twenty  bogas  stood  in  three  feet  of  water,  on 
the  lower  side  of  the  boat — which  lay  obliquely  to  the  stream 
— pushing  against  the  current.  They  carried  out  hawsers,  and 
they  slipped.  They  tied  them  better,  and  broke  them.  The 
spar  with  which  a  resolute  Ohio  captain  would  crawl  over  two 
feet  of  dry  bar,  was  unknown  to  them.  There  we  lay,  and  we 
lay  all  day. 

At  night  we  were  notified  that  we  were  to  leave  the  boat  ear- 
ly next  morning  in  the  champan  that  had  been  towing  more 
than  a  week  at  our  stern  filled  with  idle  bogas.  Now  com- 
menced a  packing-up,  and  it  was  like  the  sack  of  a  city  for  con- 
fusion. All  languages  were  put  in  requisition.  One  question 
would  begin  with  "  Where  is — ,M  the  next  with  "Donde  esta — ," 
another  with  "  Ou  est — ,"  "  Wo  ist — ."  Only  the  Italian  was 
precluded  from  the  use  of  his  mother  tongue.  It  was  at  bed- 
time only  that  the  Babel  became  quiet,  and  our  twelfth  day  on 
the  boat  was  at  an  end. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE    CHAMPAN. 

Bogas. — Farewell  to  Steam. — Trying  to  be  "  down  sick." — The  Hammock. — 
Our  Prison. — On  short  Allowance. — Plank-making. — Platanal. — Chocolate. — 
Buena  Vista. — On  Shore. 

THE  champan,  which  had  been  forgotten  for  so  many  days, 
early  became  the  object  of  universal  attention.  It  had  been  in- 
tended for  the  short  distance  not  navigable  by  steam,  and  it  was 
only  after  great  diplomacy  that  terms  could  be  found  on  which 
all  parties  could  agree  for  a  greater  amount  of  service.  No  task 
is  more  disagreeable  than  to  negotiate  with  bogas,  and  this 


80 


NEW  GRANADA. 


PASSENGER  LIST.  81 

morning  the  bargain  was  to  be  reconcluded.  In  the  course  of 
the  discussion,  the  bogas  made  a  show  of  returning  the  baggage 
to  the  boat,  selecting  for  the  demonstration  some  light,  bulky 
articles. 

It  is  time  now  to  describe  the  champan.  It  is  much  larger 
than  a  bongo,  being,  in  fact,  a  flat  boat  with  an  arched  roof — tol- 
do  (the  same  word  describes  also  a  musquito-bar,  a  bed-curtain, 
and  a  tent),  woven  of  poles  and  thatched  with  palm  leaf.  The 
ends  are  open  to  the  air ;  the  width  of  the  boat  is  about  7  feet, 
and  the  length  of  the  covered  part  may  have  been  15  or  20  feet. 
It  contained  but  one  article  of  freight,  a  hogshead  of  crockery, 
but  our  baggage  seemed  to  nearly  fill  it.  One  passenger,  how- 
ever, contrived  to  keep  a  portion  of  the  floor  free  from  trunks  by 
spreading  his  bed  down  upon  it.  As  for  myself,  I  paid  little 
attention  to  matters,  as  I  was  suffering  from  a  distressing  diar- 
rhea, the  result,  perhaps,  of  the  beautifully  clear  Nare  water  with 
which  we  regaled  ourselves.  I  ate  nothing  this  morning  before 
starting ;  the  others  took  only  a  cup  of  chocolate. 

A  Bogota  Yankee  and  his  son  remained  with  his  large  and 
varied  lot  of  freight  on  board  the  steamer.  There  were  eight  of 
us,  then,  consigned  to  the  tender  mercies  of  an  uncivilized  horde 
of  bogas,  most  of  them  absolutely  naked,  governed  by  a  patron 
of  a  little  higher  grade,  who,  with  his  woman — patrona — occu- 
pied the  open  stern — popa — of  the  boat ;  and  all  that  repre- 
sented the  owners  of  the  boat — captain,  clerk,  steward,  cook — 
all  was  supplied  by  Richard  (the  steward — a  Jamaica  negro) 
and  Manuel,  a  stupid  Indian  boy,  who  scarce  understood  any 
Spanish !  I  complained  of  this  to  the  captain,  but  he  told  me 
that  even  what  he  did  was  a  favor  and  not  an  obligation,  done 
at  a  great  expense,  and  that  it  was  optional  to  take  the  champan 
or  wait  the  rise  of  the  river  in  the  boat.  My  complaint,  then, 
was  groundless. 

It  is  time  now  to  introduce  to  the  reader  these  seven  fellow- 
prisoners  and  victims  with  whom  I  was  now  brought  into  so 
close  and  involuntary  an  intimacy.  They  were, 

1.  A  little  Granadan  of  the  name  of  Lara,  who  lived  in  Hon- 
da.    He  spoke  Spanish  only. 

2.  A  Frenchman  who  had  been  in  Jamaica,  and  spoke  En- 
glish and  Spanish  well.     He  was  a  sort  of  apothecary. 

F 


82  NEW  GRANADA. 

3.  His   son,  a  thievish  little  rascal,  speaking  Spanish  and 
French.     He  would  read  all  the  children's  tracts  I  would  lend 
him,  and  stole  from  under  my  mattress  some  anti-Catholic  tracts 
I  had  there,  which  I  did  not  think  best  to  lend. 

4.  Another  Frenchman,  a  Bogota  tailor — a  nice  man — speak- 
ing French  and  Spanish. 

5.  A  fine  young  Italian,  named  Dordelli,  nephew  to  a  mer- 
chant in  Bogota.     He  was  going  from  there  to  establish  a  branch 
of  his  house  in  Cucuta.     He  was  a  naturalist  and  my  especial 
friend.     He  spoke  French  and  Spanish. 

6.  A  Dutch  violinist,  who  had  been  in  the  United  States  with 
Sivori,  and  was  now  going  through  the  American  Tropics.     He 
was  a  gentlemanly  man,  but  unprincipled  and  miserly  to  excess. 
He  spoke  Low  Dutch,  German,  English,  French,  and  a  little 
Spanish. 

7.  His  companion,  a  pianist,  an  easy,  over-generous  man,  who 
had  given  up  all  the  financiering  operations  to  his  more  penuri- 
ous partner ;  he  spoke  the  same  languages,  and  also  Latin  to  me 
when  we  wished  the  Frenchman,  No.  2,  not  to  understand  us. 

There  never  had  been  very  strict  discipline  on  the  steam-boat. 
Here  there  was  and'could  be  none  except  that  of  the  patron  over 
the  bogas.  These  all  assembled  in  the  front  open  space,  the 
proa — forecastle ;  and  one  of  them  began  a  prayer,  which  all  the 
rest  finished.  I  could  never  determine  whether  this  prayer  was 
in  Latin,  Spanish,  or  Lengua  Franca. 

Then  most  of  them  sprung  to  the  roof,  seized  their  palancas 
(described  on  page  39),  and  commenced  pushing  against  the 
bottom  of  the  river,  and  walking  toward  the  stern,  shouting,  Us! 
us !  us !  us !  us !  us !  us !  till  they  could  go  no  farther.  Their 
cry  was  tremendous.  Oh  for  some  method  incapable  of  exag- 
geration, like  the  photographic  process,  to  record  it  and  compel 
belief!  A  pack  of  hounds  may  make  as  much  noise  in  some 
given  half  hour  as  a  crew  of  bogas,  but  these  continue  it,  only 
with  the  intermissions  of  eating  and  crossing  the  river,  from 
daybreak  till  night.  They  shout,  and  jump  on  the  toldo  over 
your  head  till  you  might  fancy  them  in  battle  and  repelling 
boarders. 

Sad  indeed  was  the  sight  to  me,  sick  and  dispirited,  to  see 
the  boat  slowly  disappearing  around  a  bend  of  the  river.  Bar- 


SICK  IN  HAMMOCK.  83 

barism  was  carrying  me  away  from  civilization,  and  when  or 
how  was  I  destined  to  see  its  like  again  ?  I  turned  and  went 
in,  for  a  horizontal  position  and  quiet  were  the  only  remedies  in 
my  power.  Horizontal  position  and  quiet !  how  could  I  obtain 
either?  I  found  Lara's  bed  empty,  and  I  lay  down  on  it.  I 
lay  there  till  he  came,  and,  fearing  to  lose  his  ill-founded  claim, 
requested  me  to  leave  it.  I  found  another  space  as  large,  which 
Richard  had  been  busy  in,  now  unoccupied,  and  I  would  have 
at  once  spread  my  hammock  on  it  as  a  bed,  but  the  little  French 
boy  was  asleep  on  it,  and  I  would  not  disturb  him.  While 
waiting  for  him  to  waken,  his  father  took  formal  possession  of 
the  spot  in  question  by  unrolling  his  bed  on  it.  None  had  leis- 
ure to  sympathize  with  me,  and  I  roused  myself,  and  I  roused 
the  boy  too,  and  called  to  Richard  to  sling  my  hammock. 

"No  hammock  can  be  slung  in  this  champan,"  says  the 
Frenchman. 

"  But  I  must  lie  down,  for  it  is  impossible  for  me  to  remain 
up  longer,"  I  replied. 

No  others  offered  any  objection,  and  the  hammock  was  soon 
slung,  in  nobody's  way,  close  up  under  the  toldo,  over  a  pile 
of  baggage  at  the  side  of  the  boat,  and  I  was  in  it.  I  wish 
my  best  friend  might  some  day  receive,  in  recompense  for  some 
great  and  good  action,  an  equal  gratification.  I  was  as  much 
out  of  the  way  of  all  the  rest  as  though  I  had  fallen  overboard 
and  drowned,  and  it  was  all  the  same  to  them.  I  remained  in 
my  hammock,  with  little  intermission,  twenty  hours,  and  rose 
entirely  recovered. 

And  here  I  feel  it  my  duty  to  detain  my  reader  while  I  pay 
a  debt  of  gratitude  to  my  hammock.  High  in  the  scale  of  phys- 
ical comforts  I  place  the  hammock.  A  clean  bed  in  the  filthiest 
hovel,  no  refuge  for  the  odious  bug,  unscalable  by  the  nimble 
flea,  it  offers  a  glorious  sleep  to  the  traveler,  when  sleep  would 
be  impossible  without  it.  Hung  up  in  the  forest  between  two 
trees,  I  have  slept  dry  and  warm  when  the  rain  was  falling  in 
torrents.  When  musquitoes  in  clouds  have  presented  their 
bills  like  hungry  creditors,  I  have  taken  refuge  beneath  its  im- 
passable toldo,  and  converted  their  threats  into  soporific  music. 
Many  is  the  time,  by  night  and  by  day,  that  I  have  read  to  keep 
awake,  or  read  to  get  asleep,  in  my  hammock  without  feeling  any 


84  NEW  GRANADA. 

of  those  inconveniences  of  holding  my  book,  having  my  head  too 
low,  or  a  violent  bend  in  the  neck,  or  any  other  disagreeables 
that  attend  on  reading  in  bed.  But  were  there  such  a  thing  as 
a  hot  night  in  New  Granada  (one  of  those  oven-like  nights  that 
has  driven  many  of  my  readers  from  their  beds  to  sprawl  them- 
selves— unpoetic  objects — on  hard  floors),  then  the  hammock 
could  show  itself  in  its  transcendency ;  but  till  I  return  to  the 
land  of  long  days  and  short  nights,  this  virtue  must  lie  dormant 
in  my  dear  hammock,  like  all  the  imaginable  virtues  of  an  infant. 

My  saddle-bow  shall  always  have  a  place  to  tie  my  ham- 
mock. I  hope  never  to  be  without  a  hammock  again.  No  house 
should  be  finished  without  abundant  facilities  for  hanging  them, 
for  the  only  inconvenience  of  a  hammock  is  its  length,  and  the 
necessity  of  two  points  of  attachment  at  sufficient  distance  and 
height  from  whence  to  depend  its  length.  What  feats,  both  of 
ingenuity  and  climbing,  have  I  performed  in  places  where  it  was 
"impossible  to  hang  a  hammock  1"  But  let  us  return  to  the 
champan. 

A  boat  30  or  40  feet  long,  with  baggage  piled  on  both  sides, 
with  an  alley-way  of  less  than  three  feet  in  the  middle,  would 
be  a  tolerable  prison  for  seven  men,  a  boy,  two  servants,  the  pa- 
tron, the  patrona,  and  an  uncounted  lot  of  bogas,  although  these 
last  had  no  rights  under  or  aft  of  the  toldo.  But  there  was  a 
sad  drawback  on  this.  There  were  three  beams  running  across 
the  top  of  the  boat,  from  side  to  side,  too  low  to  creep  under 
and  too  high  to  step  over,  so  that,  in  fact,  we  were  penned  up 
like  animals  in  a  cattle-show. 

Such  was  our  home,  or  our  prison,  from  Monday  till  Satur- 
day. Once  or  twice  a  day  we  came  to  land  when  the  bogas' 
dinner  was  boiled  enough,  but  as  soon  as  it  was  eaten  they  pray- 
ed again,  and  on  they  went  again  with  an  us !  us !  us !  us !  us  I 
us !  uh !  !  !  jumping  and  screaming.  One  black  rascal  had  a 
string  tied  round  his  waist,  and  tied  to  it  his  trunk  key.  So 
he  has  clothes,  it  seems,  somewhere ;  but  when  a  man  has  put 
every  rag  he  has  in  the  world  into  his  trunk,  in  what  pocket 
shall  he  put  his  key?  A  knotty  question,  which  the  fellow 
seems  to  have  solved  completely. 

But  the  most  amazing  problem  of  political  economy  I  ever 
tried  to  solve  is  how  to  nerve  a  naked  vagabond  up  to  almost 


THE  BOGA.  85 

superhuman  exertions,  day  after  day,  in  a  land  where  starva- 
tion is  impossible.  The  boga's  task  used  to  be  to  push  his 
huge  champan'  against  a  violent  current  up  stream,  from  Mom- 
pos  to  Honda — a  month's  dire  task  of  twelve  hours'  dreadful  la- 
bor every  day,  except  two  or  three  accustomed  stops,  where  nei- 
ther promises,  threats,  blaspheming,  nor  pistols  could  start  him 
a  particle ;  but  you  may  as  well  inquire  why  a  man  will  be  a 
poet,  a  naturalist,  or  a  book-maker,  with  the  certainty  of  hard 
labor  and  bad  pay,  as  a  boga.  Boga  nascitur. 

The  truth  seems  to  be  that  our  boga  is  a  great  sensualist. 
He  has  his  finery  and  embroidered  shirts,  and  he  must  have  his 
dances  and  drinking  frolics.  We  may  suppose  him,  then,  to 
arrive  home  with  an  amount  of  money  that  the  upland  Indian 
never  has  seen ;  but  his  old  debts,  and  one  or  two  benders, 
make  short  work  with  it.  Then  he  resorts  to  borrowing  till 
that  resource  is  exhausted,  and  again  he  must  get  a  champan ; 
but  I  must  forewarn  my  readers  that  the  borrowing  part  of  the 
business  will  not  go  far,  for  the  credit  system  is  not  well  un- 
derstood in  low  latitudes.  So  the  river-craft  is  based  on  the 
vice  and  improvidence  of  its  victims.  I  see  many  analogies  be- 
tween bogas,  the  deck-hands  of  the  Mississippi,  and  common 
sailors.  The  Millennium  would  involve  the  reconstruction  of 
many  classes  of  society. 

Generally,  in  all  parts  of  the  Magdalena,  one  bank  is  steep 
and  the  other  shallow.  The  champan  chooses  the  latter,  and, 
when  it  changes  to  the  other  side  of  the  river,  we  must  cross  it. 
All  the  men  on  the  toldo  jump  down  forward,  and  each  one 
takes  his  paddle — canalete.  Then  we  have  an  intermission  of 
the  noise  till  they  are  again  at  their  poles.  Some  of  them  stand 
in  the  proa  all  the  time,  and  push  there.  These  occasionally 
exchange  the  pole  for  the  hook — gancha — and  thus,  at  times, 
manage  to  pass  a  small  turn  of  steep  bank,  and  save  crossing 
the  river  twice,  which  is  always  effected  with  a  great  loss  of 
ground. 

One  of  the  greatest  trials  of  life  used  to  be  to  manage  the  bo- 
gas  in  ascending  from  Mompos  to  Honda.  It  is  almost  impos- 
sible to  hurry  them ;  sometimes  they  desert,  sometimes  rebel. 
The  laws  now  give  you  even  less  control  of  them  than  former- 
ly ;  and,  unless  the  navigation  of  the  Magdalena  is  specially  pro- 


86  NEW  GRANADA. 

tected,  it  is  quite  likely  that  it  may  be  impeded,  delayed,  and 
rendered  more  costly  by  the  change.  The  tendency  of  the  ultra- 
republicanism  now  springing  up  is  to  protect  the  vagabond,  but 
this  must  soon  reach  its  limit. 

We  always  ate  while  the  boat  was  going,  and,  as  the  kitchen 
was  nothing  but  a  frame  filled  with  earth  in  the  popa,  with  tul- 
pas,  our  meals  could  not,  even  had  we  wished  it,  been  simulta- 
neous with  those  of  the  bogas.  In  fact,  we  preferred  taking 
their  meal-time  for  a  little  ramble  on  shore.  In  one  of  these 
rambles  with  Dordelli  I  came  upon  two  men  at  work,  a  really 
strange  sight  in  this  land.  With  the  most  shocking  substitute 
for  axes  they  had  cut  down  a  large  tree,  hewn  it  four-square,  and 
were  now  cutting  a  deep  groove  on  the  upper  side,  like  a  trough. 
They  showed  me  a  similar  but  deeper  groove  on  the  under  side, 
and  told  me  that  when  these  two  grooves  met  in  the  middle 
they  would  have  two  planks — a  hard  way  of  making  lumber. 
I  think  they  were  to  make  part  of  a  champan.  This  was  the 
only  instance  of  men  at  work  that  I  saw  between  Cartagena  and 
Bogota,  except  one  man  making  a  fish-net  at  a  town  on  the  Mag- 
dalena. 

We  were  gone  longer  than  we  expected,  and  found  the  com- 
pany all  waiting  for  us.  We  had  left  them  under  the  impres- 
sion that  they  were  going  up  to  a  house  to  buy  provisions,  which 
they  did  not.  They  were  little  satisfied  with  our  delay,  as  the 
bogas  had  been  fighting  while  they  were  waiting,  and  it  was 
feared  that  they  would  go  no  farther  for  some  hours.  However, 
in  a  little  while  they  prayed  again,  and  were  in  as  good  starting 
order  as  ever.  After  this  they  contrived  their  midday  halt 
generally  on  an  island,  or  in  shallow  water,  where  they  would 
wade  ashore  to  eat,  leaving  us  in  the  boat. 

But  of  nothing  can  I  complain  so  much  as  of  the  Jamaica  ne- 
gro, Richard,  who  was  our  steward.  He  seemed  determined  to 
carry  economy  to  the  utmost.  He  had  now  turned  cook,  though 
I  imagine  any  one  of  our  number  would  have  shown  more  sci- 
ence in  the  matter.  Nothing  was  to  be  had.  Frequently  the 
whole  meal  for  eight  of  us  was  a  single  fowl  and  hard  crackers. 
Nay,  he  even  complained  that  the  "gentlemen  used  too  much 
sugar  in  their  coffee"  (milk  we  had  none  in  all  the  voyage),  and 
undertook  the  task  of  sweetening  it  for  us.  As  for  fruit  or 


SHOET  ALLOWANCE.  87 

other  luxuries,  there  was  none  to  be  had.  Save  a  green  pine- 
apple that  I  saw  at  one  of  our  stopping-places,  I  saw  neither 
fruit  nor  fruit-tree  after  leaving  San  Pablo.  And  here  we  were, 
almost  without  resources,  and  with  no  remedy  but  to  advance. 

At  length  the  conduct  of  the  Frenchman,  No.  2,  became  intol- 
erable. At  one  of  our  scant  meals  of  one  chicken,  he,  in  virtue 
of  his  post  next  the  popa,  seized  on  nearly  half  of  it  for  himself 
and  his  boy.  I  came  next,  and  then  Dordelli,  but  we  always 
passed  it  on  without  taking  any ;  this  time  it  came  back  to  us 
with  one  diminutive  joint  of  a  wing,  which  Dordelli  took ;  it  was 
no  object  to  either  of  us,  and  I  fasted  till  the  next  meal.  To 
prevent  the  recurrence  of  this  injustice,  the  pianist  at  the  next 
meal  took  his  seat  by  the  Frenchman.  Certainly  so  little  of 
manly  fairness  could  not  have  been  found  in  any  class  of  people 
that  I  have  any  knowledge  of. 

About  this  time  a  tree  on  the  banks  attracted  my  attention 
from  its  frequency  and  its  singular  port.  It  was  sometimes  30 
feet  high,  with  a  hollow  stem,  and  large  peltate  leaves  on  the  ex- 
tremities only  of  the  branches.  The  flower  resembled  an  im- 
mense catkin  of  a  willow  or  birch.  They  call  it  guarumo.  It 
is  Cecropia  peltata. 

Once  again  we  all  went  ashore  in  hopes  of  buying  something 
to  eat.  After  passing  through  a  skirting  of  wood,  we  came  to 
a  platanal  or  plantain-field.  I  know  of  nothing  in  nature  more 
majestic  than  a  platanal.  The  real  stem  of  the  platano,  Musa 
paradisiaca,  is  not  developed,  but  a  false  trunk  of  fibrous  foot- 
stalks of  leaves  rises  10  feet  high,  and  is  6  or  8  inches  in  diam- 
eter. It  is  important  to  know  whether  the  fibre  of  this  huge 
herbaceous  stem  can  be  made  into  paper.  It  is  sometimes  used 
for  strings.  The  blades  of  the  leaves  are  6  or  8  feet  long  and 
2  feet  wide.  Horses  eat  them  greedily.  The  plants  are  about 
a  dozen  feet  apart,  and  when  one  is  cut  down  a  shoot  springs  up 
that  again  matures  in  about  a  year.  From  the  summit  springs 
out  a  spike  of  flowers  that  develops  into  a  raceme  (racimo)  of 
fruit  three  feet  long,  and  as  heavy  as  a  man  can  conveniently 
carry.  The  fruits  are  seedless,  an  inch  in  diameter  or  more, 
and,  in  the  harton,  8  inches  long.  The  skin  comes  off  read- 
ily, and,  when  ripe,  the  fruit  is  good  both  raw  and  every  way  it 
can  be  cooked.  It  is  roasted  for  bread,  and  tastes  something 


gg  NEW   GRANADA. 

like  cake  or  sweet  potato,  but  softer  and  sweeter  than  the  last. 
It  is  generally  eaten  green,  roasted  or  boiled,  and  is  then  insipid, 
and  to  me  abominable. 

The  banana,  guinea  (Musa  coccinea  and  M.  sapientium),  is 
known  in  our  Northern  cities.  As  a  fruit  it  is  better  than  the 
plantain,  but  is  insipid  when  cooked,  and  is  useless  when  not 
ripe.  It  grows  like  the  platano,  but  the  stem  is  purple,  and 
the  fruit  shorter.  It  is  not  much  cultivated.  There  is  a  be- 
lief that  it  will  kill  one  to  eat  guineos  and  drink  spirits  too  soon 
thereafter.  I  never  tried  it.  There  are  other  species  or  varie- 
ties of  Musa,  but  they  are  little  cultivated.  The  dominico,  said 
to  be  Musa  regia,  is  very  good,  but  smaller,  and,  to  my  taste,  in- 
ferior to  the  banana.  It  is  useless  to  enter  a  platanal  in  hopes 
to  find  ripe  fruit  in  it.  I  never  have  seen  a  single  raceme  in 
my  life  that  I  have  not  been  directed  to.  The  reason  must  be 
improvidence ;  they  raise  rather  fewer  than  they  need,  so  that 
they  are  generally  eaten  as  soon  as  they  get  their  growth. 

We  proceeded  half  a  mile  through  the  platanal,  and  came  to 
a  house  or  hut  where  lounged  and  sat  two  or  three  half-naked 
lazy  mortals.  Here  I  saw,  for  the  first  time,  the  cacao-tree 
which  yields  chocolate.  The  first  thing  that  strikes  the  behold- 
er is  the  strange  way  that  the  fruit  is  stuck  against  the  side  of 
the  tree  or  the  larger  limbs,  projecting  horizontally,  as  if  stuck 
endwise  on  a  peg.  The  flower,  too,  would  be  curious  were  it 
larger,  having  some  little  extras  about  it,  as  Byttneriate  flowers 
generally  have ;  but  they  are  small,  and,  in  the  cacao,  white. 
The  fruit  is  six  or  seven  inches  long,  and  three  or  four  in  diam- 
eter. It  is  ribbed  like  a  melon,  but  never  opens.  It  is  knock- 
ed off  when  it  appears  to  the  eye  to  be  ripe ;  two  or  three,  per- 
haps, from  a  tree,  are  as  many  as  will  be  ripe  at  the  same  time. 
Children  carry  them  in  their  hands  to  a  central  heap,  that  grows 
from  day  to  day,  tifl  enough  is  collected  to  make  a  batch. 

Then  come  the  man,  his  wife,  all  the  boys  and  girls,  all  the 
babies  and  dogs.  The  effective  force  surrounds  the  pile.  Two 
of  them  draw  their  machetes,  and  begin  opening  the  fruit.  They 
apply  the  word  mazorca  equally  to  an  ear  of  Indian  corn  or  a 
fruit  of  cacao,  only  the  granos  of  one  are  on  the  outside  and  those. 
of  the  other  within.  The  man  gives  the  mazorca  three  cuts 
lengthwise,  not  so  deep  as  to  injure  the  precious  seeds  within, 


CACAO  AND  CHOCOLATE.  89 

and  tosses  it  over  to  the  softer  sex  and  smaller  fry.  They  tear 
it  open  with  their  claws,  and  find  within  the  thick  fleshy  rind  a 
central  cavity,  from  the  centre  of  which  rose  a  column  with 
the  seeds  attached ;  but  when  ripe,  the  whole  is  reduced  to  a 
pulp,  in  which  the  large  seeds  are  packed  so  compactly  that 
they  alone,  if  thrown  in  loosely,  would  be  more  than  sufficient 
to  fill  the  entire  cavity.  These  they  separate  a  little  from  the 
pulp,  and  throw  them  into  a  tray,  upon  a  skin,  or  on  some  plan- 
tain leaves.  The  pulp  is  as  agreeable  in  taste  as  any  fruit  we 
have,  but,  as  it  is  difficult  to  get  a  spoonful  from  a  fruit  that  con- 
tains a  pint  of  seeds,  it  is  not  worth  the  trouble  of  eating.  They 
often  suck  it  off  the  seeds  as  they  get  them  out.  If  the  seeds 
are  to  be  loaded  on  a  mule,  they  are  put  into  a  guambia,  a  bag 
made  of  net-work.  As  the  meshes  are  large  enough  to  let  po- 
tatoes through,  it  requires  some  management  to  fill  it  with  seeds 
of  cacao.  First  you  put  in  pieces  of  plantain  leaf,  and  upon 
them  the  quantity  of  cacao  they  will  hold.  Pieces  of  leaf  are 
added  to  the  edges  of  the  first,  overlapping  freely,  till,  when  it  is 
full,  the  whole  guambia  appears  lined  with  leaf.  Arrived  home, 
they  are  put  into  a  trough — canoa — and  left  to  ferment  till  the 
seed  is  freed  from  what  appears  to  be  an  aril  or  false  covering. 
Then  it  is  spread  on  a  skin  in  the  door-yard  to  dry. 

It  is  prepared  by  grinding  on  a  warm,  flat  stone,  by  the  appli- 
cation of  another  stone,  held,  like  a  rolling-pin,  in  both  hands, 
but  not  rolled.  The  stone  has  under  it  a  place  to  put  coals, 
and  it  is  heated  to  about  120°.  Maize  is  always  ground  on  this 
stone.  The  cacao  is  first  ground  alone,  and  then  with  a  coarse 
sugar,  to  which  dried  bread  is  sometimes  added,  for  a  cheap  ar- 
ticle for  the  poor.  This  kind  I  have  sometimes  eaten  in  bulk. 
Cho-co-la-te  is  made  into  tablas,  or  cakes,  of  from  an  ounce  to 
an  ounce  and  a  half,  the  quantity  to  which  two  ounces  of  water 
are  to  be  added  for  a  cup.  They  are  boiled  together,  generally 
in  a  small  brass  jar — olleta — and,  before  pouring  out,  as  much 
of  it  is  reduced  to  foam  as  possible  by  making  a  grass-stem,  on 
which  portions  of  the  roots  are  left,  to  revolve  rapidly,  as  in 
beating  eggs. 

The  cacao  loves  the  tierra  caliente.  Its  price  varies  exceed- 
ingly, being  often  dearer  than  in  New  York,  and  sometimes  ten 
cents  per  pound,  or  less.  It  is  never  so  cheap  as  to  be  an  un- 


90  NEW   GRANADA. 

profitable  crop.  It  is  generally  sold  in  the  seed,  and  ground  by 
the  family  that  use  it. 

In  all  these  days  we  saw  but  one  town.  It  was  Buenavista, 
near  the  mouth  of  the  Rio  Negro,  that  rises  below  and  west  of 
the  great  plain  of  Bogota.  A  wagon-road  may  yet  follow  this 
river  down,  and  near  here  may  be  the  future  port  of  Bogota. 
At  present  there  is  here  only  a  large,  straggling  town  of  mud 
and  thatch.  I  saw  a  champan  partly  made  here,  from  which  it 
is  inferrible  that  there  are  here  men  who  work  sometimes.  I 
saw,  too,  a  garden  that  had  been,  but  the  gate  was  broken  down, 
and  the  whole  area  was  filled  with  tall  weeds.  The  utter  neg- 
lect of  horticulture  is  inexplicable,  but  may  arise  from  the  im- 
possibility of  preserving  the  crop  from  theft.  Except  the  gar- 
den of  Don  Miguel  Caldas,  at  Bolivia,  in  the  hills  above  Vijes. 
many  miles  from  any  ordinary  inhabitants,  the  few  gardens  I 
have  seen  have  padlocks.  Be  it  as  it  may,  there  are  no  gar- 
den-thieves at  Buenavista.  Children  are  very  scarce  here:  in 
all  the  upper  river  they  have  been  very  few — a  striking  con- 
trast to  the  crowds  that  lined  the  banks  of  the  lower  river.  The 
absence  of  children  may  explain  the  grass-grown,  desolate  quiet 
of  these  towns,  which  seem  like  decayed  places  that  have  no 
future. 

On  Friday  the  river  became  more  tortuous  and  rapid.  On 
our  left,  on  the  west  bank  of  the  river,  and  not  very  far  from 
Honda,  we  saw  a  mountain  range  of  the  boldest  description. 
High  on  the  summit  were  enormous  perpendicular  precipices, 
seen  in  clear  profile  against  the  sky.  Rarely  can  we  place  our- 
selves in  a  situation  to  get  a  profile  view  of  a  single  precipice, 
but  the  top  of  a  distant  mountain-ridge  so  set  off  looks  more 
like  cloud  than  rock. 

We  have  passed  several  avisperos.  I  know  not  whether  they 
are  nests  of  wasps  or  hornets ;  but  the  bogas  show  them  great 
respect,  passing  them  in  entire  silence.  Should  we  unfortunate- 
ly disturb  them,  we  would  have  to  fall  back  and  let  them  get 
quiet  again,  unless  we  could  cross  over  and  pass  on  the  other 
side. 

About  this  time  we  passed  Conejo,  where  Richard's  reign 
and  our  torment  were  to  have  commenced,  had  the  boat  not 
grounded.  From  here  it  would  have  been  quite  tolerable,  and 


FIRST  PEDESTEIAN  TRIP.  91 

it  may  even  have  happened  that  the  boat  would  ascend  entirely 
to  the  Vuelta,  which  a  good,  light-draft  boat  ought  to  reach  at 
any  time  in  the  year.  Some  boats  leave  the  passengers  to  make 
their  way  from  Conejo  or  La  Vuelta  as  they  can.  Ours  carried 
us  to  the  very  head  of  navigation. 

At  last,  on  Saturday  morning,  I  was  called  from  my  ham- 
mock and  asked  to  decide  whether  I  would  submit  to  another 
day's  imprisonment  or  walk  to  Honda.  It  did  not  take  me 
long  to  decide.  The  two  Hollanders  were  of  the  same  mind, 
and  we  hastily  closed  our  seventeen  days'  voyage  with  a  cup  of 
chocolate  and  a  hard,  dry  cracker,  and  leaped  ashore. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

HONDA. 

Bodega  and  Bodeguero. — Crusoe's  Long-boat. — Men  of  Burden. — Wonderful 
Bridge. — Municipal  Suicide. — Salt. — A  universal  Swim. — A  petrified  Cit7- 

So  sudden  was  my  exit  from  the  boat  that  I  did  not  even 
know  on  which  bank  we  were.  As  Honda  is  on  the  left  bank, 
I  supposed  we  were  on  the  same,  but  I  found  it  otherwise.  We 
are  at  La  Vuelta  de  la  Madre  de  Dios — the  Turn  of  the  Mother 
of  God.  La  Vuelta  is  the  farthest  that  steamers  ever  go,  but 
they  say  that  boats  can  go  up  to  the  foot  of  the  Honda  rapids  if 
they  have  sufficient  power. 

At  La  Vuelta  there  is  but  a  mere  shed  or  a  small  house. 
Were  it  healthy,  it  would  be  an  admirable  place  for  a  farm,  for 
the  land  ought  to  be  fertile,  and  it  is  a  convenient  place  to  em- 
bark or  disembark.  There  is  a  good  road,  as  they  call  it,  all 
the  way  from  here  to  Bogota.  With  good  beasts,  the  journey 
from  here  to  Guaduas  could  be  made  in  a  day. 

Travelers  now  often  come  up,  with  their  baggage,  on  mules 
from  La  Vuelta  to  Honda.  It  is  better  to  engage  them  at  once 
for  Guaduas  if  possible,  or,  if  not,  to  Pescaderias,  opposite  Hon- 
da, where  they  will  stand  the  best  chance  of  finding  cattle,  and 
where  I  have  seen  better  accommodations  for  travelers  than 
ever  I  found  in  Honda.  Should  you  go  up  by  water,  if  you 


92  NEW   GRANADA. 

have  much  baggage,  it  had  better  be  left  on  the  east  bank,  and 
not  taken  into  Honda. 

We  struck  off  directly  from  the  river  through  a  variegated 
country,  over  an  old  mule-road.  Soon  we  found  high  hills 
between  us  and  the  river.  Monkeys  were  climbing  over  the 
trees,  and  various  flowers  covered  the  ground.  A  little  grass- 
like  plant  here  first  met  my  eye,  that  I  have  found  every  where 
since.  It  is  noticeable  in  having  its  upper  leaves  (bracts)  white 
at  the  base.  It  is  the  Dichromena  ciliata. 

We  had  walked  some  miles  before  we  came  to  any  of  the 
few  houses  that  are  found  on  the  road.  Then  we  entered  a  pas- 
ture through  an  open  gate  with  a  roof  on  the  top.  I  was  sur- 
prised at  this,  but  I  learned,  from  further  observations,  that  all 
gates  here  have  roofs.  Doors, .gates,  and  bars  all  have  the 
name  of  puerta.  A  pair  of  bars  is  puerta  de  trancos,  and  a  gate 
puerta  de  golpa.  It  is  often  very  inconvenient  to  the  traveler 
not  to  know  some  such  phrases,  which,  being  perhaps  local,  are 
not  to  be  found  in  dictionaries  or  phrase-books.  These  last  I 
have  found  very  deficient  for  Granadan  use,  being  generally 
composed  for  the  longitude  of  Madrid. 

We  began  to  wonder,  after  going  six  or  eight  miles,  whether 
it  might  not  be  possible  that  we  had  made  some  false  turn,  and 
were  getting  into  the  interior,  when  a  roaring  drew  us  a  little  to 
the  right,  and  there  was  the  river,  rushing  and  turnbling  over 
the  rocks,  so  that  we  wondered  how  the  poor  champan  was  ever 
to  get  past  this  point,  called  Quita-palanca. 

We  reached  the  foot  of  the  rapids  unexpectedly.  We  found 
there  a  small  collection  of  cottages,  a  good-sized  rough  store- 
house, and  a  magnificently-planned  government  structure,  cither 
in  ruins  or  unfinished.  It  bore  the  inscription  of  BODEGA  DE 
BOGOTA  on  the  arch  over  the  door. 

The  keeper  of  the  bodega  is  a  character.  It  was  at  a  later 
period  I  came  in  contact  with  him.  I  had  some  baggage  com- 
ing to  be  deposited,  and,  to  hasten  matters,  I  began  by  unsad- 
dling my  own  beast,  and  putting  in  my  saddle  and  bridle  before 
the  peon  got  in.  Then  I  called  out  the  little  thin  old  man  from 
his  breakfast. 

"What's  this  in  here?"  says  he,  pointing  to  the  intruding 
articles. 


RIGID  BODEGUERO.  93 

"  It  is  only  my  montura,"  I  replied.  This  term  includes  sad- 
dle, bridle,  halter,  and  whatever  else  may  belong  to  your  saddle- 
horse. 

"  Take  it  out,"  he  cried ;  "  it  has  no  business  in  there  till  it 
has  been  entered." 

I  was  greatly  diverted  by  the  zealous  strictness  of  the  only 
man  I  have  ever  found  here  with  any  system  at  all,  and  would 
gladly  have  spent  half  an  hour  in  resisting  his  mandate,  but 
time  pressed.  My  peon  took  out  the  saddle,  the  old  man  count- 
ed it,  and  it  was  put  back  as  before.  At  another  time  I  greatly 
scandalized  the  good  bodeguero  by  changing  my  linen  there. 
He  said  all  he  could  to  induce  me  to  change  my  purpose  and 
not  my  camisa ;  but  necessity,  though  she  knows  no  law,  is  a 
keen  logician.  I  argued  with  him,  working  diligently  with  my 
hands  the  while,  till  we  had  nothing  to  argue  for. 

Near  the  bodega,  under  a  large  tree,  I  saw  the  sections  of  an 
immense  sugar-boiler.  They  were  six  or  eight  in  number,  and 
were  destined  for  Cuni,  two  days' journey  in  the  mountain.  To 
carry  one  of  them  there  would  be  a  task  comparable  only  with 
that  of  transporting  one  of  Hannibal's  elephants  or  a  piece  of 
Napoleon's  artillery  over  the  Alps.  But  all  the  region  through 
which  they  have  been  brought  is  a  fine  sugar  country,  and  here 
the  concern  has  been  lying  for  years  like  a  stranded  whale.  Some 
transportation  transactions  that  begin  here  are  to  be  compared 
with  the  movement  of  a  small  army.  One  piece  was  so  heavy 
that  the  cargueros  (as  human  beasts  of  burden  are  called)  are 
said  to  have  eaten  a  cow  a  day.  The  heaviest  load  ever  carried 
to  Bogota  by  a  single  carguero  is  said  to  have  been  carried  by 
a  woman.  It  is  given  at  216  pounds ;  but  there  is  always  an 
uncertainty  about  translating  weights. 

The  carguero,  like  the  boga,  has  a  more  laborious  calling  than 
any  known  in  the  United  States,  and  the  philosophy  of  his  at- 
tachment to  it  is  even  more  difficult  than  that  of  the  boga.  He 
is  a  native  of  a  higher,  colder  clime,  and  of  a  more  industrious 
race.  Nor  is  he  always  a  poor  man.  Colonel  Santamaria  tells 
me  he  was  once  riding  a  sillero  or  saddle-man,  who,  from  a  sum- 
mit, pointed  out  a  farm  of  his  on  which  he  had  a  tenant.  They 
are  of  Indian  blood,  mixed  or  unmixed,  and  go  naked  from  the 
waist  upward,  and  from  the  middle  of  the  thigh  downward.  The 


94  NEW  GRANADA. 

weight  is  supported  by  two  straps  across  the  chest.  I  am  told 
the  carguero's  wife  meets  him  on  the  last  day  of  his  journey, 
brings  him  food,  and  takes  his  load. 

I  met  them  once  as  I  was  coming  down  from  Bogota,  string- 
ing along  the  road  for  hours,  with  boxes  of  all  imaginable  shapes, 
and  found  here  at  the  bodega  the  fountain  from  which  the  stream 
flowed.  It  was  the  machinery  of  some  kind  of  a  factory. 

After  hallooing  "  Paso !"  and  "  Pasero  !" — ferry  and  ferryman 
— till  we  were  tired,  we  started  out  a  dilatory  ferryman,  who 
took  us  across  to  a  large  sandy  beach.  He  is  obliged  to  carry 
the  neighbors  gratis,  and  pay  the  province  something  for  the 
privilege  of  charging  a  half  dime  and  extorting  a  dime  when  he 
can  from  all  others.  This  pasaje  is  an  item  of  provincial  rev- 
enue that  ought  to  be  centralized,  as  they  say,  for  it  is  drawn 
from  the  pockets  of  inhabitants  of  other  provinces  rather  than 
of  their  own.  This  particular  ferry  is  the  worse  off,  as  it  is  on 
no  traveled  road,  so  that  the  Hondenos  are  almost  the  only  ones 
that  cross,  and  they  cross  gratis.  The  delays  of  this  ferry,  and, 
still  more,  its  vexations,  are  a  reason  for  going  straight  on  to  Pes- 
caderias  instead  of  going  into  Honda  at  all.  The  ferry  there  is 
bad  enough,  but  this  is  worse.  You  can  walk  from  the  bodega 
to  the  Pescaderias,  and  a  very  pleasant  walk  it  is,  especially  in 
the. 'morning.  You  may  find,  on  low  bushes,  some  Sterculiate 
flowers  and  fruits,  both  of  a  peculiar  structure.  The  flowers,  an 
inch  across,  are  red,  and  will  remind  you  a  little  of  the  mallows. 
The  fruit,  of  which  you  can  not  fail  to  find  some  old  ones,  are 
an  inch  long,  and  curiously  twisted.  It  is  a  Helictres. 

At  the  beach,  on  the  Honda  side,  is  a  row  of  cottages,  chiefly, 
I  think,  of  bogas,  and  a  considerable  warehouse.  This  is  the 
bodega  of  Honda,  or,  it  is  better  to  say,  of  Ibague  and  Santa 
Ana.  Here  lie  some  old  guns,  that  seem  to  have  been  left  in 
a  military  movement  for  want  of  land  transportation.  They 
will  never  move  again  till  they  are  sold. 

A  short,  steep  hill,  with  a  paved  road,  led  up  to  a  dry,  sunny, 
uncultivated  plain,  extending  nearly  to  Honda.  Here  I  first 
met  a  Lantana,  a  genus  that  has  followed  my  steps  every  day 
since.  It  was  a  Verbenate  shrub,  three  or  four  feet  high,  with 
a  flat  disk  of  flowers,  looking  almost  like  Labiate  flowers,  but 
the  fruits  were  small  berries.  The  unexpanded  flowers  were 


HONDA.  95 

red,  the  young  flowers  orange,  and  the  older  ones  yellow.  The 
plain  was  bounded  on  the  east  by  the  river,  roaring  over  a  rocky 
bed,  and  absolutely  unnavigable.  President  Herran,  however, 
once  ventured  down  it  in  a  boat,  on  an  occasion  when  time 
seemed  of  more  moment  to  him  than  safety.  A  railroad  is  pur- 
posed around  the  rapids,  through  Honda,  but  I  fear  it  will  not 
pay,  if  executed. 

On  the  west  was  the  range  of  almost  perpendicular  bluffs 
which  surprised  me  so  the  day  before  with  their  fantastic  forms. 
On  the  north  they  come  down  to  the  river.  Beyond  the  plain, 
on  the  south,  was  Honda,  and,  back  of  it,  another  high  hill  comes 
down  to  the  river. 

The  road  descends  by  a  pavement  to  a  very  old  stone  bridge 
across  a  little  dry  ravine,  and  immediately  after  enters  the  an- 
cient city  of  Honda.  Here  once  united  two  currents  of  trade, 
flowing  toward  Spain  from  the  lofty  cities  of  Bogota  and  Quito. 
The  robbery  of  Indians,  that  once  enriched  these  cities,  is  over : 
their  trade  with  Spain  is  done.  No  trade  from  Quito  seeks  the 
Magdalena,  and  the  scanty  exports  and  imports  of  Bogota  are 
beginning  to  creep  along  the  base  of  the  mountain  on  the  oppo- 
site side  of  the  river.  No  wonder,  then,  that  ten  steps  in  the 
old  city  show  it  to  be  decayed.  Many  a  rich  old  house  is  re- 
duced to  a  roofless  ruin,  hedging  in  tall  weeds  with  walls  of 
thick,  rough  masonry.  Honda  is  all  stone  and  tile,  so  that 
never  had  an  obsolete  old  place  harder  work  to  tumble  down, 
and  it  would  not  have  succeeded  without  the  respectable  aid 
of  a  few  earthquakes. 

The  richest  specimen  of  earthquake-architecture  I  ever  saw 
is  the  bridge  over  the  Guali,  a  noisy  river  that  runs  right 
through  the  middle  of  the  town.  This  was  formerly  spanned 
by  two  bridges  made  of  hard  stone  and  a  mortar  almost  as  hard. 
Of  the  upper  one  the  abutments  remain,  and  a  fragment  of  one 
pier.  The  other  has  undergone  so  many  cataclysms,  that  no 
description,  ground-plans,  and  elevations  would  explain  to  an 
architect  its  present  condition,  and  no  geological  investigations 
and  speculations  of  which  I  am  capable  could  lead  me  to  satis- 
factory conclusions  as  to  what  had  happened  to  it.  It  had 
broken  down,  been  mended  with  wood,  burned,  and  remended ; 
so  the  track  of  the  bridge  is  of  three  different  dates.  Part  is 


96  NEW  GRANADA. 

strong  enough  to  bear  two  loaded  elephants  abreast,  and  part  so 
weak  that  all  horsemen  are  required  by  law  to  dismount,  and 
every  beast  to  be  unloaded.  Part  of  the  masonry  leans  up 
stream,  and  part  down  stream  ;  and  one  piece,  shaped  something 
like  an  old  tin  lantern,  has  puzzled  me  a  dozen  times  to  decide 
whether  the  axis  of  the  cone  were  originally  horizontal  or  ver- 
tical. 

But  there  is  one  more  wonder  about  the  bridge.  So  anxious 
are  the  provincial  Solons  to  consummate  the  utter  ruin  of 
Honda,  that  they  have  imposed  a  peaje  of  a  dime  on  each  ter- 
cio  of  merchandise  that  passes  the  bridge,  while  on  the  other 
side  is  an  unobstructed  portage  from  the  smooth  water  above 
the  rapids  to  that  below.  Altogether,  I  should  like  dearly  to 
pack  up  this  victorious  rival  of  the  tower  of  Pisa  in  a  box,  and 
send  it  to  New  York ;  but  they  can  not  spare  it,  for  the  rapid 
Guali  is  never  fordable,  and  I  fear  it  will  be  a  long  time  ere  an- 
other bridge  will  span  it. 

Above  ihe  bridge  you  turn  to  your  left,  then  to  your  right, 
then  go  up  hill  through  narrow  streets,  and  then  down  hill 
through  a  narrower  one,  to  come  to  a  wide,  straight  street,  the 
upper  end  of  which  terminates  on  a  smooth  beach  at  the  junc- 
tion of  a  small  stream  with  the  Magdalena,  at  the  very  head  of 
the  rapids.  Above  here  the  river  is  navigable  for  days  without 
more  obstruction.  This  upper  point  is  the  market-place,  and 
the  straight  street  is  probably  the  newest  part  of  the  city. 

In  coming  up,  we  had  the  Magdalena  near  us  all  the  while, 
at  the  left,  with  no  street  between  us  and  the  river.  At  first 
we  had  only  one  tier  of  inconsiderable  houses  on  our  right ; 
then  there  was  a  back  street  west,  then  a  little  plaza,  then  a 
church,  and  back  of  it  a  little  hill  with  houses  on  it ;  then  a 
street  up  the  north  bank  of  the  Guali,  in  ruins ;  then  a  street  on 
the  south  bank,  with  some  good  houses,  some  ruins,  and  a  plaza 
in  front  of  the  barracks  and  cantonal  offices :  then  a  m'o-h  hill 

o 

with  a  pleasant  street  or  two  running  along  the  top,  with  an- 
other plaza  and  another  church ;  lastly,  another  branch  of  the 
town,  mostly  cottages  of  mud  and  thatch,  runs  up  a  fine  piece 
of  intervale  along  the  north  side  of  the  small  stream  which 
bounds  Honda  on  the  south.  It  runs  at  the  foot  of  a  very  high 
hill,  coming  down  to  the  very  bank  of  the  Magdalena.  This 


LODGING  AND  BOARD  IN  HONDA.        97 

quiet  vale  pleases  me  much,  for  the  cottages  have  space  around 
them  that  a  little  labor  might  convert  into  the  prettiest  gardens 
in  the  world.  The  heart  of  the  town,  on  the  other  hand,  just 
south  of  the  bridge,  is  a  dense  mass  of  stone  houses  and  crook- 
ed, rough-paved  streets,  crowded  in  between  a  hill  and  two  riv- 
ers— a  perfect  petrifaction. 

To  me  the  chief  attraction  of  Honda  is  because  it  is  the  resi- 
dence of  two  as  excellent  gentlemen  as  ever  a  traveler  would  wish 
to  meet  with  in  a  strange  land.  I  allude  to  Mr.  J.  H.  Jenney, 
of  Boston,  and  Mr.  Treffrey,  an  Englishman,  who  has  lived  a  long 
time  in  New  Granada,  and  is  married  to  a  native  of  the  country. 
To  both  these  gentlemen  I  am  indebted  for  almost  every  thing 
it  was  possible  for  me  to  need  or  for  them  to  bestow.  The 
presence  of  such  men  in  a  foreign  land  is  a  source  of  national 
pride,  too  often  mortified  by  the  unworthy  representatives  of 
the  Anglo-Saxon  race  dispersed  over  the  world.  I  had  no  let- 
ters to  either,  and,  at  my  first  visit,  Mr.  Jenney  was  from  home. 
I  directed  my  steps  to  Mr.  Treffrey,  and  was  welcomed  with  a 
cordiality  that  put  me  entirely  at  my  ease.  He  took  me  to  break- 
fast with  him,  hunted  up  Mr.  Jenney's  keys,  and  at  once  in- 
stalled me  solitary  master  of  the  best  house  in  Honda,  as  I 
should  judge. 

To  relieve  me  of  the  care  of  housekeeping,  he  showed  me  a 
place  where  I  could  take  my  meals.  A  traveler  here  would  call 
Mr.  Jenney's  house  my  posada,  and  the  place  where  I  ate,  my 
fonda.  It  would  be  hard  to  translate  these  words  by  hotel  and 
eating-house,  but  they  are  the  nearest  approximations  we  have 
here.  The  fonda  would  not  have  been  considered  entirely  un- 
exceptionable by  Northern  moralists,  inasmuch  as  the  lady 
hostess  had  a  few  illegitimate  children  playing  about  the  house ; 
but  travelers  must  get  over  their  scruples,  or  manage  them  as 
best  they  may. 

I  found  the  house  spacious  and  exceedingly  comfortable, 
though  far  inferior  to  what  the  society  of  its  master  and  the 
hospitality  of  his  table  afterward  made  it.  It  had  a  date- 
palm  growing  in  the  narrow  patio,  or  court,  and  reaching  up 
nearly  as  high  as  the  roof.  All  the  rooms  were  in  the  sec- 
ond story,  and  communicated  by  means  of  a  gallery — corre- 
dor — running  around  the  court.  Balconies  overhung  the  nar- 

G 


98  NEW  GRANADA. 

row  streets,  and  gave  an  opportunity  of  seeing  what  was  going 
on  in  town. 

I  went  to  the  fonda  four  times  a  day ;  early  and  late  for  choc- 
olate and  sweetmeats — dulce — and  at  about  10  and  4  for  my 
meals.  These  were  generally  beef,  with  yuca  and  plantains. 
Fish  are  very  plenty  here,  for  you  will  see,  of  a  morning,  men 
and  boys  with  three  or  four  huge  ones,  as  much  as  they  can 
carry,  balanced  over  their  shoulder  on  a  stick,  or  propped  up 
by  another  stick  leaning  against  a  wall.  They  labor  under  the 
demerit  of  being  cheap,  and  our  fondista  would  not  feel  that  she 
is  giving  her  guests  their  money's  worth  if  she  set  fish  before 
them.  There  is  a  smaller  species,  however,  possessing  the  same 
merit  as  the  round  clam  (quahog,  Bostonice)  has  in  New  York 
— it  is  dearer.  I  preferred  the  larger  kind.  They  are  frequent- 
ly dried,  and  I  have  met  them  in  the  market  of  Bogota. 

In  the  market  I  saw  a  curious  mineral  for  sale,  which  I  at  first 
took  to  be  marble.  It  was  of  a  dirty  reddish-white  color,  and 
with  a  grain  like  sandstone,  and  was  broken  in  pieces.  I  inquired 
its  use,  and  learned  that  it  was  salt.  Most  of  the  salt  is  from 
Cipaquira.  They  take  water  from  a  salt  spring,  and  dissolve 
impure  rock  salt  in  it  till  the  water  is  saturated.  It  then  set- 
tles and  is  decanted  into  earthen  jars  over  a  furnace.  These  are 
supplied  with  brine  till  they  are  full  of  a  mass  of  conglomerated 
salt.  The  jars  are  then  broken,  and  the  mass  within — moya — 
broken  into  pieces  of  a  good  size  for  loading  on  the  backs  of 
mules.  No  covef  is  used  to  protect  this  load  from  the  rain, 
which,  however,  does  not  greatly  diminish  the  huge  compact 
masses.  Nearly  all  salt  springs  and  mines  are  national  proper- 
ty, and  the  salt  is  made  by  contract,  and  sold  by  the  govern- 
ment at  prices  fixed  by  law.  This  monopoly  has  many  ene- 
mies, and  the  government  would  gladly  abolish  it,  but  their 
revenues  are  already  too  scanty.  I  saw,  in  another  place,  some 
moyas  made  in  smaller  jars :  these  I  knew  to  be  contraband, 
made  secretly,  without  paying  the  excise  duty. 

At  night  Mr.  Treffrey  sent  four  men  down  for  my  baggage. 
It  made  me  ache  to  see  my  heavy  trunks  mounted  on  a  man's 
back  for  a  two  miles'  porterage.  I  paid  two  of  them  a  dime 
each ;  the  other  two  demanded  a  dime  and  a  quarter.  All 
agreed  that  the  difference  was  just,  though  they  did  not  deny 


HONDENOS  BATHING.  99 

that  the  weight  was  equal.  Soon  after  they  arrived  a  collector 
came  in  for  peaje  for  two  bales  of  merchandise.  I  had  two 
bales  of  paper  for  drying  plants :  it  was  not  merchandise,  and 
they  let  it  pass. 

Honda  is  a  forwarding  town  rather  than  mercantile.  One  in- 
dustry, however,  is  carried  on  here,  that  is  fast  growing  in  New 
Granada — cigar-making.  It  is  but  recently  that  the  free  culti- 
vation of  tobacco  has  been  permitted.  Tobacco  culture  used  to 
be  limited  to  two  places :  Ambalema,  a  town  above  Honda,  on 
the  same  side  of  the  river,  the  richest  town  in  the  province  of 
Maraquita,  and  Palmira,  in  the  Cauca.  Each  cultivator  took  out 
a  license  to  raise  so  many  plants,  and  if  he  exceeded  the  num- 
ber a  heavy  fine  followed.  No  peasant  dared  raise  any  for  his 
own  use.  I  can  not  see  how  the  multiplication  of  cigars  or  the 
reduction  of  price  can  benefit  the  world,  but  the  abrogation  of 
this  monopoly  has  certainly  given  a  great  impulse  to  industry 
in  this  region.  The  abolition  was  begun  by  Mosquera,  but  ac- 
complished by  President  Lopez,  his  successor. 

The  next  day  was  Sabbath,  but  I  had  not  yet  learned  that  he 
who  would  go  to  mass  must  go  early,  so  I  have  always  found 
the  churches  closed.  It  was  rather  a  busy  day,  for  it  seemed 
as  if  all  the  population  were  bent  on  a  public  swim.  The  little 
river  has  its  congregation  when  it  has  any  water.  The  Magda- 
lena  is  much  frequented  just  where  the  rapids  begin,  and  again 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Guali.  The  Guali  itself,  between  the  bridge 
and  the  Magdalena,  was  the  resort  of  a  few  quiet  ones,  but  the 
liveliest  scenes  were  in  the  rapid  current  just  above  the  bridge. 
There  were  full-grown  men  and  large  boys  stark  naked,  young 
girls  in  the  same  state,  and  women  of  all  ages  with  their  bodies 
more  or  less  covered  with  a  blue  skirt. 

The  better  bred  of  these  would  come  down  under  an  umbrella 
to  shade  them  from  the  sun,  a  servant  following  with  a  skirt,  a 
sheet,  and  a  totuma.  The  bather  would  throw  the  sheet  over 
her,  and  emerge  from  it  in  the  skirt.  Next  the  body  is  covered 
with  soap,  and  the  hair  filled ;  this  is  then  converted  into  lath- 
er. Then  follows  a  pouring  of  water  from  the  totuma  for  a  long 
time  without  intermission.  If  any  children  are  to  be  washed, 
now  is  the  time  to  take  them  in  hand.  After  this,  they  plunge 
into  the  stream,  if  they  choose,  and  thus  pass  the  time  they 


100  NEW  GRANADA. 

have  to  spend  in  the  water.  Again  they  envelop  themselves  in 
the  sheet,  which  now  serves  for  a  towel  as  well  as  a  dressing- 
room,  and  at  length  they  emerge  from  it  nearly  dressed.  The 
servant  rinses  the  skirt  in  the  river,  wrings  it,  and  puts  it  and 
the  other  wet  clothes  into  a  tray,  which  she  carries  home  on  her 
head.  Thus  the  lady  has  secured  a  good  swim  in  the  open  riv- 
er without  any  violation  of  decorum.  But  it  would  not  be  fair 
to  the  reader  to  leave  him  to  imagine  that  all  these  details  are 
the  result  of  one  day's  observation.  It  would  be  difficult  to  find 
the  hour  in  all  the  week  in  which  some  of  these  scenes  are  not 
going  on. 

Back  of  Honda  are  plains  of  different  elevations,  extending  to 
the  west  to  the  base  of  the  Quindio  Mountains.  In  these  plains 
are  the  silver  mines  of  Santa  Ana,  which  I  had  not  time  to  visit. 
I  walked  out  more  than  a  mile,  and  had  a  strong  desire  to  go 
farther,  especially  as  I  saw  before  me  what  looked  exactly  like  a 
great  embankment  for  a  railroad.  It  was  the  edge  of  a  higher 
plain,  but  it  was  very  difficult  to  undeceive  myself.  Here  I  met 
Don  Diego  Tanco  on  foot,  and  we  walked  back  speaking  of  the 
military  operations  that  these  plains  had  witnessed  in  the  revo- 
lutions of  New  Granada,  and  particularly  of  a  battle  there  last 
year.  He  afterward  sent  me  an  invitation  to  dinner  by  a  deaf 
mute ;  but  I  had  no  idea  that  I  was  concerned  in  the  paper  he 
was  showing  round  the  table,  and  did  not  discover  the  fact  till 
too  late. 

I  called  on  Seiior  Tanco  one  evening.  I  found  no  place  to 
knock,  neither  at  the  porton,  at  the  foot  of  the  stairs,  nor  yet  at 
the  head  of  them.  Sefior  Tanco  told  me  the  custom  was  to  ad- 
vance till  the  visitor  meets  some  one.  I  found  a  little  monkey 
chained  to  the  top  of  the  stairs,  that  manifested,  as  usual,  a  live- 
ly desire  to  bite  me.  Within  I  found  the  family,  partly  in  the 
balcony,  and  the  rest  near  the  windows.  I  was  much  pleased 
with  my  call. 

I  experienced  a  material  kindness  at  Senor  Tanco's  hand  on 
the  eve  of  leaving  Honda.  I  had  found  a  young  chap  at  the 
Bodega  de  Bogota  who  would  take  my  cargas  and  myself  to 
Guaduas,  where  he  lived.  The  bargain  was  struck,  but  it  re- 
mained to  be  seen  whether,  in  all  Honda,  I  could  borrow  or  hire 
a  saddle.  I  was  about  giving  up  in  despair,  when  Senor  Tanco 


PESCADEKIAS.  101 

came  forward  to  my  relief  with  the  spontaneous  offer  of  his  sad- 
dle, which  I  gladly  accepted. 

The  start  was  to  be  an  early  one,  and  the  men  were  all  en- 
gaged who  were  to  carry  my  baggage  to  the  upper  ferry,  and 
Gregorio,  the  peon,  had  engaged  the  ferryman  to  be  at  his  post 
at  daybreak.  I  then  bought  some  chocolate  and  bread  for  my 
breakfast.  They  have  a  convenient  pouch  or  pocket  to  sling 
over  the  shoulder,  called  a  carriel.  Some  have  locks  to  them ; 
some  are  highly  ornamented.  As  a  substitute  for  this  useful 
article,  I  now  bought  a  little  bag,  here  called  a  mochila,  and 
elsewhere  a  guambia. 

Guambia,  as  I  said  before,  often  means  a  large  sack  or  net, 
in  which  things  are  carried  on  a  mule's  back.  Mochila  often 
means  a  money-bag,  more  properly  called  talega,  capable  of 
holding  five  or  ten  pounds  of  cash ;  while  again  a  purse  to  car- 
ry in  the  pocket  is  called  bolsa,  and  the  pocket  itself  bolsilla. 

Early  next  morning  came  Gregorio  and  the  cargueros,  and 
soon  all  my  effects  were  on  the  bank,  where  the  ferryman  ought 
to  have  been.  After  a  tedious  delay  he  came,  smoking  his  ci- 
gar, and  a  fisherwoman,  who  seemed  to  have  been  long  at  her 
fishing,  sent  her  little  girl  to  beg  a  light  of  him.  So  we  crossed 
over  to  Pescaderias. 

Las  Pescaderias — the  fisheries — was  lately  but  a  little  collec- 
tion of  huts.  Now  Don  Santos  Agudelo  is  building  a  ware- 
house, and  a  large  house  that  will  serve  as  a  hotel.  All  the 
mules  that  travel  between  Honda  and  Guaduas  are  kept  at 
Guaduas,  and  if  a  man  would  go  there,  he  must  either  send  up 
for  mules,  or  take  some  that  have  brought  a  load  down,  and  are 
going  back  empty.  It  is  quite  common  to  send  a  messenger  on 
foot  to  Guaduas,  and  wait  till  he  can  find  mules  and  a  peon,  and 
return  with  them.  Now  Pescaderias  is  the  point  to  secure  a 
passage  up  with  the  least  inconvenience.  Honda  has  the  ad- 
vantage of  good  landings  above  and  below  the  rapids,  while 
those  on  the  eastern  bank  are  both  steep  and  stony.  Honda 
needs  a  good  bridge  across  the  Magdalena,  and  a  new  bridge 
across  the  Guali,  and  then  it  would  recover  its  pristine  import- 
ance. A  bridge  is  already  projected,  but  I  doubt  if  the  Magda- 
lena will  ever  be  bridged  here ;  and,  if  not,  Honda  is  a  doomed 
city. 


102  NEW  GRANADA. 

I  had  some  terrible  ideas  of  the  mountain-road  to  Bogota,  and 
of  passive  submission  to  the  fantasies  of  my  mule.  This  last 
thing  has  been  wrongly  represented.  You  should  select  the 
path  for  your  mule  just  as  you  would  for  your  horse  at  home ; 
but,  at  home  or  abroad,  when  you  come  to  a  difficulty  in  your 
path,  you  must,  after  ordering  your  animal  to  pass  it,  let  him 
do  so  in  his  own  way,  without  pulling  at  the  bit.  The  doc- 
trine, as  ordinarily  stated,  endangered  my  neck  unnecessarily. 
The  mountain  mule  possesses  no  miraculous  instinct  that  will 
lead  him  to  encounter  a  less  difficulty  now,  to  save  him  from  a 
greater  one  farther  ahead. 

How  a  baquiano  would  have  stared  at  seeing  me  come  down 
the  first  broad  inclined  plane  of  rock,  dipping  like  the  roof  of  a 
house  at  about  thirty  degrees!  He  would  have  thought  me 
mad,  while  I  was  only  carrying  out  my  theory  of  "  passive  obe- 
dience" without  flinching ;  and  I  supposed,  too,  that  there  were 
plenty  of  worse  places  ahead,  that  would  test  my  faith  in  mulish- 
ness  still  more  severely.  The  rock  was  a  spur  that  runs  down 
to  the  river,  over  which  we  climbed,  because  going  round  is 
contrary  to  the  old  Spanish  theory.  Several  more  we  pass, 
keep  up  the  river  some  miles,  and  then  boldly  launch  forth  into 
the  sea  of  mountains  on  the  left. 

Before  doing  this  I  must  breakfast.  Gregorio  had  a  com- 
panion, to  whom  he  committed  the  baggage,  and  devoted  him- 
self to  aiding  my  breakfast.  I  had  chosen  a  simple  one  as  the 
beginning  of  my  semi-bivouac  life.  It  was  bread  and  chocolate. 
We  stopped  at  a  house  that  had  a  fire  burning  back  of  it.  Into 
one  of  my  little  tin  pails  he  put  a  pint  or  more  of  water,  and 
two  balls — tablas — of  chocolate,  unwillingly  obeying  me  in  the 
strange  proportions  and  large  quantity,  for  half  a  tea-cup  of  wa- 
ter and  one  tabla  of  chocolate  seemed  to  him  all  that  an  ordinary 
stomach  could  master.  While  this  was  going  on,  I  noticed  a 
colony  of  wasps  that  had  taken  possession  of  a  cavity  under  or 
in  the  walls  of  the  hut,  from  which  it  was  too  much  trouble  to 
dislodge  them. 

Breakfast  over,  we  soon  began  to  ascend,  but  not  rapidly. 
We  came  to  Las  Cruces,  a  place  where  a  more  experienced  trav- 
eler would  have  ordered  a  better  breakfast  than  I  had,  and  lost 
two  or  three  hours  in  waiting  for  it.  He  would  also  have  run 


MEALS  ON  THE  ROAD.  103 

great  risk  as  to  the  variety  of  the  larder,  with  a  dead  certainty 
against  him  as  to  the  cuisine.  To  cook  for  one's  self  is  a  great 
annoyance,  and  eating  at  houses  by  the  way  is  very  uncomfort- 
able, wasteful  of  time,  and  not  very  cheap.  Could  we  only  af- 
ford the  meat-biscuit,  or  reduce  beef  to  a  dry  powder,  it  would 
settle  the  question  in  favor  of  the  independent  plan.  On  the 
whole,  I  would  advise  making  provision  for  four  days  between 
Honda  and  Bogota  before  leaving  home,  providing  every  thing 
except  sugar,  chocolate,  and  water. 

After  leaving  Las  Cruces  there  was  a  long  spot  of  nearly  lev- 
el road.  I  gave  my  mule  into  Gregorio's  hands,  to  be  more  in- 
dependent. I  passed  under  a  beautiful  Bignoniate  vine,  covered 
with  large  purple  blossoms,  that  I  wished  in  New  York.  I 
came  to  another  plant  with  stiff,  thorny  leaves,  much  like  those 
of  the  century-plant.  The  inner  leaves  were  red,  and  within  is 
a  dense  head  of  flowers  six  inches  in  diameter,  which  give  place 
to  scores  of  fruits  as  large  as  a  finger.  It  bears  the  name  of 
pinuela,  and  is  one  of  the  best  fruits  of  the  land,  being  among 
the  sweetest  in  the  world,  with  a  good  supply  of  a  very  agreea- 
ble acid.  The  drawbacks  are  that  each  fruit  must  be  peeled — 
and  the  operation  covers  the  fingers  with  sirup — and  that  there 
is  rather  an  abundance  of  seeds.  These  are  said  to  have  been 
the  original  carat  weights,  and  the  plant  is  the  Bromelia  Karatas. 
It  makes  a  formidable  hedge,  and  it  often  costs  more  to  cut 
your  way  with  a  long  machete  to  the  centre  of  a  vigorous  plant 
than  all  the  fruits  are  worth.  I  have  seen  where  boys  have  cut 
a  sort  of  dog-hole  to  creep  in,  six  or  eight  feet  under  the  leaves, 
and  it  seemed  to  me  an  operation  worthy  of  Baron  Trenck. 
There  is  another  species  or  variety,  I  know  not  which,  that  is 
so  acrid  as  to  blister  the  lips.  I  have  seen  another  species  in 
the  West  Indies,  with  the  flowers  in  a  spike,  instead  of  down 
at  the  roots  of  the  leaves  in  a  head.  This  is  Bromelia  Pin- 
guin.  Next  an  Oxalis  carried  my  thoughts  home  again. 

Now  we  began  rising  more  rapidly,  till  the  prospect  became 
magnificent,  and,  for  the  first  time  since  leaving  New  York,  I 
found  the  luxury  of  cool  water.  At  last  the  wished-for  and 
dreaded  moment  arrived  when  my  ascent  for  the  day  was  at  an 
end.  I  was  standing  on  the  Alto  del  Sargento,  4597  feet  above 
the  level  of  the  sea.  Honda,  being  718  feet  above  the  sea,  lay 


104  NEW  GEANADA. 

3879  feet  beneath  me,  while  on  the  other  side  was  a  continuous 
descent  of  1000  feet  to  Guaduas.  And  now  the  ridge  I  was  to 
descend  was  to  shut  out  the  Magdalena  from  view.  My  fare- 
well to  my  native  shores  cost  me  not  a  sigh ;  the  last  glimpse 
of  the  masts  of  my  vessel  fading  in  twilight,  and,  weeks  after- 
ward, the  chimneys  of  the  steamer  disappearing  at  a  turn  of  the 
river,  went  nearer  my  heart ;  but  now  I  was  to  sever  the  last 
link  that  bound  me  to  all  my  heart  holds  dear.  I  dismounted. 
I  gazed  on  the  immense  valley  far  beneath  my  feet,  with  the 
tawny  Magdalena  winding  through  it,  so  that  I  could  have  watch- 
ed the  progress  of  a  steam-boat  from  this  point  for  one  or  two 
days  without  ever  losing  sight  of  her  for  half  an  hour. 

And  all  this  wide  space  looked  like  untouched  forest,  just  as 
it  appeared  to  the  first  of  the  Conquerors  that  ever  climbed  to 
this  point.  What  vegetable  wealth,  if  not  mineral  also,  has  lain 
here  undeveloped  for  more  than  300  years!  And  how  much 
longer  ere  civilized  industry  will  be  sending  precious  woods 
down  the  Magdalena,  and  planting  orange-groves  and  plantain- 
fields?  There,  in  the  distance,  is  a  gently-swelling  hill,  its  sides 
and  its  top  all  buried  in  primeval  forest.  Who  has  ever  drunk 
from  the  springs  that  must  gush  out  of  its  sides  ?  And  to  what 
purpose  is  the  mill-stream  that  murmurs  past  its  base  ? 

Then  I  turned  my  eyes  to  the  future,  as  if  I  stood  on  the 
threshold  of  my  fate  for  good  or  ill.  Who  can  tell  the  joy  and 
sorrow  that  shall  mingle  in  my  breast  if  I  ever  live  to  return 
homeward,  and  look  down  from  this  point  again  on  a  river  flow- 
ing 600  miles  straight  toward  home  ?  Shall  I  survive  the  dan- 
gers of  the  way — the  crumbling  precipices,  the  hidden  serpents, 
and,  more  than  all,  the  seductions  of  Saxon  and  un-Saxon  vices 
that  too  often  bury  body  and  character  in  a  common  grave  ? 

I  have  stood  there  again,  but  a  dense  cloud  filled  all  the  space 
to  the  opposite  mountains,  and  under  those  clouds  lay  two  hos- 
tile bands  of  men,  expecting  soon  to  engage  in  deadly  conflict  for 
the  key  of  the  Magdalena.  My  previous  fears  for  a  distant  and 
unknown  future  were  now  exchanged  for  an  anxiety  for  the  day. 

Nothing  is  so  apt  to  be  exaggerated  as  danger.  I  met  a  sol- 
dier, who  assured  me  that  the  firing  between  the  two  forces  was 
about  commencing  when  he  left.  As  this  weighed  little  with 
me,  he  added  that  to  cross  to  Honda  would  be  impossible,  and 


ALTO  DEL  SAKJENTO.  105 

equally  so  to  procure  a  morsel  of  food,  either  at  Pescaderias,  or 
even  by  proceeding  down  to  La  Vuelta.  Here  was  a  less  evil 
than  being  shot,  but  a  more  certain,  and,  therefore,  a  more  serious 
one ;  but  as  I  determined  to  go  on,  I  bought  a  live  fowl,  and 
my  peon  secured  half  a  dried  fish  at  a  house  which  we  passed. 
These  we  tied  to  the  top  of  the  baggage,  and  proceeded.  We 
arrived  at  Pescaderias  in  time  to  find  the  defense  of  Honda  aban- 
doned, and  Melo's  troops  in  victorious  possession.  Instead  of 
whistling  bullets  exchanged  between  the  two  banks,  I  suffered 
no  farther  evil  than  a  detention  all  night  on  the  eastern  bank, 
and  a  fast  of  24  hours. 

There  can  be  no  better  medicine  for  gloomy  reflections  than 
the  sight  that  met  my  eyes  as  I  turned  my  back  on  the  Magda- 
lena.  Instead  of  a  boundless  wilderness,  there  lay  at  my  feet  a 
happy  valley,  green  with  grass,  cane,  and  maize,  and  dotted  with 
cottages  and  fruit-trees,  and,  at  the  eastern  edge  a  large  town, 
with  its  paved  streets,  crowded  houses,  and  white  church  front- 
ing me.  Such  is  the  valley  of  Guaduas,  a  paradise  as  to  tem- 
perature and  fertility,  where  heat  and  cold  are  unknown,  the  ther- 
mometer being  always  between  70°  and  76°.  It  is  said  to  be 
unhealthy  from  dampness,  but  on  this  point  I  am  not  satisfied. 
I  think  it  must  be  founded  in  imagination. 

I  stopped  at  one  of  the  cottages  on  the  way,  and  asked  for  wa- 
ter. A  woman  was  sitting  on  the  ground  or  a  low  stool  braid- 
ing a  palm-leaf  hat,  and  her  little  daughter  was  beside  her. 
They  offered  me  dulce,  which  I  declined.  I  waited  there  till  my 
peon  came  up,  and  continued  descending.  It  was  now  raining 
in  the  valley,  and  the  shower  at  length  reached  us.  We  took 
shelter  in  a  deserted  cottage,  near  which  I  saw  a  beautiful  Ama- 
ryllis in  flower,  perhaps  "  a  garden  flower  run  wild."  Here  I 
took  my  India-rubber  encauchado,  and  also  my  gun.  And  now 
I  found  out  a  naughty  trick  of  Gregorio's.  He  had  taken  a 
fancy  to  speculate  a  little  in  the  huge  dried  fishes  of  Honda,  and, 
finding  my  cargas  rather  light,  he  added  a  venture  of  his  own. 
It  was  in  contact  with  one  of  my  blankets,  which,  when  the  fish 
became  moistened  with  rain,  became  fishified,  to  my  long  dis- 
comfort. I  remonstrated,  and  he  placed  some  leaves  of  old 
thatch  between  the  fish  and  my  bedding. 

From  here  my  way  was  steep  downward,  in  a  road  often  slip- 


106  NEW  GRANADA. 

pery  with  rain,  and,  encumbered  with  my  gun  and  encauchado, 
I  continued  a  victim  to  my  doctrine  of  passivity.  At  length  I 
reached  the  plain  without  a  fall,  and  soon  was  at  the  house  of 
Mr.  William  Gooding.  He  kindly  found  room  for  my  baggage 
in  an  empty  house  of  his,  and  for  myself  at  his  table,  thus  de- 
frauding the  negress  Francisca  of  her  lawful  prize.  Every 
stranger  that  arrives  in  Guaduas  is  at  once  referred  to  this  en- 
terprising woman  for  bed,  or  board,  or  beasts  to  continue  his 
journey.  She  will  always  promise  you  beasts ;  and,  what  is 
more,  she  will  have  them,  if  not  at  the  time  she  sets,  at  least 
soon  after. 

I  left  Don  Diego's  montura,  according  to  agreement,  with  his 
cousin,  Senor  Gregorio  Tanco.  He  keeps  a  school  here,  about 
which  I  distrust  both  my  recollections  and  impressions  very 
much,  so  different  are  they  from  any  thing  I  have  seen  since. 
First,  girls  went  there,  or  at  least  I  understood  Mr.  Gooding's 
little  girls  to  say  that  there  was  where  they  went,  and  that, 
among  other  things,  they  learned  coser,  to  sew.  As  cocer* 
means  to  cook,  and  coser  was  new  to  me,  I  came  near  adding 
another  ridiculous  impression  to  my  blunders  about  this  school. 
I  never  elsewhere  in  New  Granada  knew  a  man  to  have  any 
thing  to  do  with  a  female  school.  Second,  I  believe  boys  went 
there.  Now  I  can  not  think  that  the  two  sexes  were  permitted 
to  attend  the  same  school.  Third,  it  seemed  to  me  a  good  school. 
My  opinion  now  is  that  the  daughters  of  Mr.  Gooding  went  and 
studied  in  the  sitting-room  of  la  Senora  de  Tanco. 

In  Guaduas  I  came  also  unexpectedly  upon  a  female  public 
school,  but  I  did  not  go  in. 

When  the  peon  had  delivered  the  saddle  and  the  accompany- 
ing letter,  I  wished  to  pay  him  off,  so  I  called  out,  "Gregorio!" 
Senor  Tanco,  of  whom  I  had  just  taken  leave,  reappeared,  think- 
ing I  was  calling  him.  Then  I  found  that  he  was  a  tocuyo  of 
my  peon ;  that  is,  he  had  the  same  Christian  name — nombre. 
Of  the  surname,  apellido,  they  make  little  account.  Tocuyo  is 
often  used  in  the  vocative.  Cristoval  Vergara,  when  he  calls 
Cristoval  Caicedo,  does  not  say  Cristoval,  but  Tocuyo. 

In  paying  Gregorio,  I  had  a  difficulty  from  not  understand- 
ing the  meaning  of  suelta,  or  plata  suelta — small  money,  change. 
*  G  has  the  sound  of  s  lisped,  and  is  often  pronounced  exactly  like  s. 


GUADUAS.  ,  107 

He  wanted  suelta,  for  his  mules  had  fasted  three  days  without 
a  mouthful — a  fact  I  now  do  not  doubt — and  his  home  was  far 
from  town.  I  thought  he  wanted  additional  pay,  and  told  him 
I  paid  him  all  I  agreed  to,  and,  over  and  above,  had  paid  his 
ferriage  and  the  freight  on  his  fish.  I  think  the  price  was  six 
dollars — it  may  have  been  but  five — for  three  mules  and  peon. 
So  we  parted. 

The  week  I  spent  with  Mr.  Gooding's  family  was  the  first 
bright  spot  in  my  peregrinations.  Some  of  the  family  spoke 
English,  and  I  never  have  had  any  Spanish  lessons  more  pleas- 
ant than  those  I  received  from  the  little  folk  there.  At  his  ta- 
ble I  learned  the  word  guarapo,  which  here  signifies  a  fermented 
solution  of  sugar,  resembling  new  cider  in  taste  and  properties. 
In  the  Valley  of  the  Cauca  the  same  word  is  applied  to  simple 
cane-juice,  either  fresh  or  boiled.  Guarapo  is  a  cheap  drink  for 
peons,  at  the  rate  of  eight  quarts  for  a  dime,  and  is  not  despised 
by  gentlemen  travelers  at  wayside  inns  at  double  that  price. 

Guaduas  contains  one  of  the  two  Houses  of  Correction — Casas 
de  Keclusion — of  New  Granada.  They  have  three  orders  of 
penitentiaries,  according  to  the  nature  of  crimes — Forced  Labors, 
Presidio,  and  the  House  of  Correction.  Where  the  law  would 
condemn  a  man  to  either  of  the  two  former,  a  woman  or  youth 
is  sent  to  the  House  of  Correction  for  a  longer  period,  so  that 
the  proportion  of  boys  and  females  here  is  large  to  that  of  men. 
Through  the  kindness  of  General  Acosta,  Jefe  Politico  pro  tern., 
who  alone  had  power  to  grant  admission  to  visitors,  I  was  con- 
ducted all  over  the  establishment.  It  was  an  extinct  Francis- 
can convent,  founded  in  1606.  These  buildings  make  excel- 
lent prisons  without  any  alteration.  All  public  buildings,  with 
scarce  an  exception,  were  originally  built  for  convents,  or  have 
been  seized  on  by  the  monks. 

I  found  the  inmates  making  cigars  and  cigar-boxes,  and  saw- 
ing out  boards  for  these  by  hand.  The  discipline  seemed  ex- 
cellent. The  matron  appeared  to  be  well  fitted  for  her  task. 
To  one  of  her  punishments  I  ventured  to  object,  as  being  hard- 
est on  the  most  sensitive  or  least  depraved.  It  was  shutting 
them  up  in  the  public  coffin,  in  which  corpses  are  taken  to  the 
grave,  and  then  taken  out  to  be  buried. 

There  are  some  criminals  here  whose  cases  would  be  great 


108  NEW  GRANADA. 

novelties  in  a  criminal  calendar.  One  was  pointed  out  to  me 
who  conspired  with  a  priest.  She  killed  a  man  for  whom  she 
was  hoiisekeeper  ;  and  the  priest  testified  to  having  married  her 
to  him  in  private  before  his  death.  She  hoped  to  inherit  his 
property,  and  share  it  with  the  priest. 

Another  woman  and  her  daughter  were  there  for  a  series  of 
horrid  cruelties  practiced  on  unfortunate  persons  of  their  own 
sex  that  fell  into  their  power.  It  seemed  to  be  without  motive, 
something  like  the  case  of  a  woman  in  New  Orleans  of  whom  I 
have  read.  This  mother  and  daughter  left  one  of  their  muti- 
lated victims  at  the  door  of  the  hospital  when  they  supposed  she 
could  never  speak  again.  I  think,  too,  that  after  their  imprison- 
ment a  skeleton  was  discovered  walled  up  in  their  house. 

Guaduas  was  the  residence  of  the  father  of  the  best-known 
writer  of  New  Granada,  ColonelJoaquin  Acosta,  as  he  is  known 
on  his  title-pages,  although  he  was  a  general  when  he  died.  He 
has  done  much  for  the  geography  and  history  of  his  country,  es- 
pecially while  minister  at  Paris.  There  he  collected  and  trans- 
lated into  Spanish  numerous  memoirs  of  Boussaingault,  and 
abridged  and  republished  the  only  scientific  periodical  ever  pub- 
lished in  New  Granada,  the  "  Semanario."  He  put  in  the  church 
at  Guaduas  the  only  town-clock  that  I  know  of  that  has  two 
hands  in  all  the  country.  Part  of  his  valuable  library  has  be- 
come national  property.  His  widow,  an  English  lady,  still  re- 
sides here.  The  immense  estate  of  his  father  is  divided,  I  am 
told,  between  his  family  and  his  half-brother,  General  Acosta. 

General  Acosta  is  said  to  be  a  man  of  immense  wealth.  It  is 
a  pity  that  he  has  arrived  now  at  the  evening  of  life  without  ever 
marrying.  Such  a  circumstance  is  far  more  common  here  than 
it  ought  to  be.  He  is  one  of  the  most  hospitable  men  in  all  the 
land.  "  Many  persons,"  says  Steuart,  "  are  in  the  habit  of  par- 
taking of  General  Acosta's  hospitalities,  and  then  of  abusing 
him  afterward,"  an  example  which  he  accordingly  imitates ;  I 
can  not. 

I  ate  at  his  table  one  of  the  most  characteristically  Granadan 
dinners  I  ever  saw.  Among  other  articles  too  numerous  and 
strange  for  me  to  enumerate,  was  one  called  bollo,  which  I  took 
to  be  a  white,  tender,  insipid  root.  It  proved  to  be  a  prepara- 
tion of  maize,  wrapped  in  the  husks  of  the  same  and  boiled. 


THE  GUADUA.  109 

It  could  not  have  been  a  favorable  time  for  a  botanist  when  I 
was  at  Guaduas,  being  just  at  the  close  of  the  dry  season.  In 
one  excursion  I  went  out  on  the  north  side  of  the  river  that  runs 
through  the  place,  intending  to  cross  it  far  above,  and  come 
down  a  road  that  ran  along  its  south  bank.  When  I  had  gone 
up  as  far  as  I  wished,  I  found  a  place  where  a  hut  had  once 
stood,  and  the  little  path  by  which  its  occupants  had  brought 
water  from  the  brook.  Here  I  was  within  less  than  two  rods  of 
the  road ;  but  I  had  not  taken  my  machete.  After  nearly  an 
hour  fruitlessly  spent  in  trying  to  penetrate  the  thicket,  I  found 
night  was  coming  on,  and  I  gave  myself  up  for  foiled,  and  made 
an  immense  circuit  over  a  horrid  tract  of  rough  grassy  hills,  and 
thus  reached  town. 

In  connection  with  Guaduas  I  must  notice  the  guadua  itself, 
the  most  indispensable  plant  of  all  New  Granada  after  the  plan- 
tain, the  cane,  and  maize.  It  might  be  called  the  lumber-tree, 
for  it  supplies  all  our  fencing  except  walls  of  brick,  rammed 
earth,  and,  rarely,  of  stone,  and  also  the  wood-work  of  most 
houses,  and  whatever  is  made  of  boards  at  the  North.  It 
is  an  enormous  grass,  like  the  bamboo  of  the  Eastern  tropics, 
growing,  however,  to  a  less  height,  only  30  or  40  feet.  The  slen- 
der foliage  is  of  inconceivable  beauty,  comparing  with  that  of 
other  trees  as  ostrich  feathers  do  with  goose-quills.  The  stem 
is  about  6  inches  in  diameter,  with  joints  about  20  inches  apart. 
The  thickness  of  the  wood  is  nearly  an  inch. 

When  poles  or  slats  are  wanted,  the  stem  is  split  into  four, 
six,  or  eight  parts.  For  boards  for  the  top  of  a  coarse  table, 
bench,  or  bedstead,  it  is  opened  and  flattened  out,  splitting 
almost  at  every  inch  of  width,  but  not  coming  entirely  apart. 
For  a  dish,  candle-case,  grease-pot,  or  extemporaneous  vessel  for 
carrying  drink  to  a  company  of  hunters  or  laborers,  it  is  cut  off 
just  below  the  partitions.  Such  a  receptacle  is  called  a  tarro. 
Tarros  of  double  capacity  are  made  for  bringing  the  domestic 
supply  of  water  for  a  family,  by  taking  a  piece  two  joints  long, 
with  a  septum  at  each  end  and  one  in  the  middle.  A  hole  is 
made  in  the  upper  and  middle  septa,  and  if  they  be  used  for 
carrying  molasses,  a  bung  can  be  put  in,  or  an  orange  used  for 
a  stopper.  Bottles  of  a  single  joint  are  used  for  holding  castor 
oil,  etc.  In  short,  the  uses  of  the  guadua  are  innumerable.  I 


HO  NEW  GRANADA. 

met  the  lumber  of  it  as  far  down  as  Sabanilla,  and  saw  some 
bad  specimens  of  the  tree  near  Cartagena. 

The  guadua  starts  from  the  ground  with  the  full  diameter, 
or  nearly  so,  but  the  joints  are  at  first  very  short.  Some  trees 
send  out  branches,  and  they  are  long,  straggling,  and  terribly 
thorny.  Others  grow  with  a  diameter  of  only  two  inches,  and 
make  good  poles  for  bringing  down  oranges,  every  one  of  which 
has  to  be  torn  from  the  tree,  or  it  decays  without  falling.  The 
cavities  of  the  guadua  often  contain  water.  It  is  erroneously 
believed  that  the  quantity  increases  and  diminishes  with  the 
phases  of  the  moon.  Stones  are  said  also  to  be  found  in  these 
joints.  This  might  be  expected,  but  I  never  found  an  authen- 
tic instance,  and  doubt  the  fact.  The  only  instance  believed  to 
occur  under  my  own  observation  was  certainly  false,  as  the 
stone  was  an  ordinary  one. 

I  must  state  one  other  thing  about  the  guadua  which  is  un- 
usual in  the  vegetable  kingdom  here,  but  very  common  at  the 
North.  It  is  apt  to  take  entire  possession  of  the  ground  on 
which  it  grows.  Now  a  square  mile  covered  with  the  same  spe- 
cies, say  a  pine,  an  oak,  or  the  beech,  an  acre  covered  with  the 
same  species  of  grass,  or  whortleberry,  or  other  plant,  is  no  un- 
common thing  at  the  North,  but  in  the  tropics  it  is  quite  differ- 
ent. Plants  are  not  gregarious  here,  still  less  exclusive.  I 
have  seen  the  guava  grow  in  natural  orchards  where  most  of  the 
trees  in  a  considerable  space  were  Psidium,  but  even  this  is  rare, 
and  in  general  you  can  not  expect,  where  you  have  found  a  plant 
you  want,  to  find  others  of  the  same  species  near  it.  If  I  wish  to 
find  a  second  lime-tree,  for  instance,  it  is  of  no  more  use  to  look 
in  the  neighborhood  where  I  found  the  first  than  in  any  other. 
But  a  guadual  is  a  considerable  space,  almost  always  near  a 
stream,  where  scarce  the  smallest  intruding  plant  is  permitted. 
The  guadua  might  be  cultivated  to  great  profit,  but  I  never 
knew  of  but  one  attempt  at  it.  The  flower  and  seed  are  so  rare 
that  few  botanists  have  ever  seen  it. 

One  night  Air.  Gooding's  little  daughters  showed  me  a  lumin- 
ous coleopterous  insect  about  an  inch  long,  called  here  cocuyo. 
It  was  a  snap-bug  of  the  size  and  form  of  the  largest  known  at 
home  as  the  Elater  ocellata,  which  closely  resembles  it  except 
in  the  luminous  faculty.  They  had  three  of  them  prisoners  in 


SABBATH  AT  GUADUAS.  HI 

"  houses"  made  by  splitting  a  piece  of  cane  and  cutting  a  cavity 
in  it  for  each  one,  so  that  the  walls  of  their  cell  serve  them  for 
food.  They  shine  continuously,  except  when  at  rest,  with  a 
light  no  brighter  than  the  instantaneous  flash  of  the  best  of  ours. 
But  their  light  is  of  two  distinct  and  beautiful  colors,  red  and 
a  yellowish  green.  I  do  not  know  if  this  depends  on  sex.  It 
is  generally  believed  that  you  can  call  the  cocuyo  to  you  by 
whistling,  but  the  experiments  I  witnessed  in  the  Cauca  were 
adverse  to  this  conclusion.  I  think  it  is  Elater  noctiluca. 

I  passed  a  Sabbath  at  Guaduas.  At  early  dawn  the  plaza  in 
front  of  the  church  was  nearly  filled  with  country  people  of  all 
shades,  from  Indian  and  negro  to  white,  with  all  imaginable 
productions  of  all  altitudes.  A  Sunday  market  is  a  great  annoy- 
ance to  any  decent  family.  It  is  so  particularly  to  Mr.  Haldane 
of  Palmar,  whose  very  name  is  suggestive  of  stiff  Scotch  Pres- 
byterianism.  He  applied  to  Archbishop  Mosquera  to  suppress 
the  Sunday  market  at  Guaduas,  but  he  told  him  that  it  was  the 
best  day  for  a  market,  as  these  poor  peasants  could  not  spare 
two  days  to  come  to  town,  and  Sunday  being  a  holiday,  they 
were  bound  to  hear  mass  on  it.  There  being  two  priests  here, 
they  have  two  masses,  and  the  market-people  may  take  charge 
of  each  other's  goods  in  turn  during  the  mass.  The  archbishop 
laughed  at  the  scruples  of  the  good  Scot,  and  applied  to  him  the 
sobriquet  of  "  Bishop  of  Guaduas." 

I  attended  here  the  first  mass  I  heard  in  New  Granada,  hav- 
ing always  before  gone  too  late.  A  little  daughter  of  Mr. 
Gooding  went  with  me.  She  left  her  hat  at  home,  and  put  on 
her  shoulders  a  black  shawl,  which,  on  entering  the  church,  she 
put  on  her  head,  and  sat  down  flat  on  the  floor.  I  felt  a  pang 
to  see  the  amiable,  intelligent  child  assimilated  with  the  masses 
around  her  in  dress  and  posture.  The  men  never  sit  on  the 
floor.  If  there  be  benches,  men  alone  sit  on  them  ;  and,  if  not, 
they  stand :  the  women  never  stand.  There  are  times  when  all 
must  kneel,  or  be  counted  impious ;  at  these  times  the  bells 
peal,  and  the  buyers  and  sellers  in  the  market  all  uncover,  at 
least.  A  Protestant  who  remains  covered  is  liable  to  have 
things  thrown  at  him,  but  would  be  protected  by  law.  No  res- 
ident Protestant  has  ever  attempted  to  resist  these  requisitions 
of  superstition,  as  far  as  I  have  learned.  A  traveler  like  my- 


112  NEW  GRANADA. 

self,  can  generally  escape  compliance  without  inconvenience ; 
but  I  hold  that  they  have  a  right  to  insist  on  our  uncovering  in 
church,  though  in  the  rare  cases  that  a  lady  wears  a  European 
bonnet — gorra — it  is  rather  inconvenient. 

Before  describing  the  mass  I  will  premise  that  the  church, 
like  almost  all  the  others  I  have  seen  here,  besides  a  gorgeous 
or  gaudy  altar  at  the  end,  had  others  of  inferior  splendor  ex- 
tending all  along  down  the  sides,  looking  not  unlike  a  row  of 
highly-ornamented  mantle-pieces.  Peculiar  merit  is  ascribed  to 
some  of  these  side-altars.  Over  each  was  generally  an  image, 
sometimes  a  picture,  covered  by  one  or  two  curtains  that  roll 
up  at  the  top  by  pulling  a  string.  All  the  images  are  painted 
to  the  life,  and  dressed  often  absurdly,  and  the  pictures  often 
have  jewels  or  finery  stuck  upon  them,  to  the  great  injury  of  the 
few  that  are  of  merit.  One  form  of  the  Crucifixion  disgusts  the 
stranger  particularly.  You  get  the  impression  that  it  was 
painted  absolutely  nude,  and  that  some  person,  shocked  at  the 
indecency,  has  sewed  on  a  piece  of  muslin.  I  have  no  doubt, 
however,  that,  on  removing  the  real  muslin,  painted  drapery 
would  be  found  under  it. 

The  mass  is  essentially  the  key-stone  of  the  ancient  and 
once  gorgeous  fabric  of  Romish  worship.  In  theory  it  professes 
to  be  the  creation  of  the  body  of  Christ  by  a  power  given  to  a 
consecrated  priest.  This  body  is  declared  to  be  divine,  not  hu- 
man— God,  not  man.  Eating  this  body  is  the  mass. 

The  ceremony  of  the  mass  varies  slightly  with  times  and  sea- 
sons, as  to  the  color  of  garments  worn  by  the  priest  (paramen- 
tos),  in  the  color  of  the  altar  decorations  (ornamentos),  and  in 
some  details  of  the  words  used ;  but  it  varies  still  more  as  to 
whether  it  is  said  or  sung,  low  mass  or  high  mass.  Low  mass 
requires  only  a  priest,  and  a  little  boy  for  an  assistant ;  but  in 
a  high  mass  two  principal  assistants  are  necessary,  at  least,  and 
I  think  others  may  also  have  a  part.  A  fluent  priest  will  say  a 
mass  in  25  minutes,  but  it  requires  sometimes  two  hours  to 
sing  one ;  but  the  general  plan  and  actions  of  both  are  the 
same. 

The  preparations  are  wasliing  the  hands  and  dressing,  with 
some  prayers,  in  a  room  adjoining  the  church,  called  the  sacris- 
tia — vestry.  The  sacristia  almost  always  opens  out  of  the 


THE  MASS. 

church  at  the  right-hand  farther  corner.  Once  only  I  knew  one 
behind  the  church,  so  that  it  was  under  the  main  roof,  and  not 
in  a  lean-to,  as  it  generally  is.  From  the  sacristia  the  priest 
issues,  robed,  and  bearing  the  cup,  which  is  always  of  gold,  or  is 
gilt  within.  On  it  lies  a  silver  plate — patena — 'like  a  cover,  and 
on  the  plate  something  looking  like  a  thin  square  book  and  an 
embroidered  cloth.  Among  other  things  said  and  read  is  part 
of  an  epistle ;  this  reading  is  on  the  right-hand  side  of  the  altar, 
nearest  the  sacristia.  After  this  the  priest  crosses  over  to  the 
other  side,  and,  among  other  things,  reads  some  in  the  Gospel. 
I  have  seen  the  nigh  (left)  side  of  a  horse  called  the  Gospel  side. 

The  book  (missal)  is  then  placed  obliquely,  so  that  the  priest 
can  read  standing  in  the  middle  of  the  altar.  Now  he  opens 
the  cover  on  the  cup.  Instead  of  paper,  it  contains  a  folded 
cloth.  He  unfolds  it,  and  finds  in  it  a  white  wafer  of  the  size 
of  a  notarial  seal,  stamped  with  a  cross.  He  lays  this  on  the 
plate.  He  empties  out  of  the  cup  a  sort  of  salt-spoon,  and  per- 
haps a  miniature  dust-pan,  both  of  silver.  He  then  wipes  the 
cup  carefully  and  covers  it.  He  goes  to  the  right  (Epistle)  side 
of  the  altar.  The  attendant  takes  a  miniature  tea-pot  off  a  tray 
of  the  size  of  a  snuffer-tray,  which  he  holds  under  the  priest's 
iingers  and  pours  water  on  them.  He  then  empties  the  water 
caught  in  the  tray  on  the  floor,  and  the  priest  wipes  the  tips  of 
his  fingers  on  a  towel,  which  the  attendant  kisses. 

Then  the  priest  proceeds  to  read  immediately  the  words  of 
consecration,  and  the  wafer  becomes  a  hostia — becomes,  as  they 
suppose,  God.  The  priest  kneels  to  adore  it,  and  then,  stand- 
ing with  his  back  still  to  the  people,  raises  it  high  above  his 
head  for  all  to  adore.  An  attendant  rings  the  altar  bell,  and 
all  kneel.  Often  the  bells  in  the  belfry  are  also  rung.  If  per- 
sons are  in  front  of  the  church,  they  ought,  at  least,  to  take  off 
their  hats,  even  though  they  be  at  some  distance,  and  occupied 
with  business.  After  the  hostia  is  raised,  the  priest  in  like 
manner  raises  the  cup,  into  which  a  large  glass  of  wine  has  been 
poured.  At  this  time  all  noisy  demonstrations  possible  are 
made.  The  organ  peals  its  merriest  notes  in  marches,  dances, 
or  waltzes.  If  there  be  cannon  or  platoons  of  soldiers  in  front 
of  the  church,  they  fire.  A  sort  of  rocket,  called  cohete,  is  oft- 
en let  off,  that  rises  a  little  way  in  the  air,  and  bursts  with  a 

H 


114  NEW   GRANADA. 

report  like  a  pistol.  The  smoke  of  gunpowder  sometimes  enters 
the  church,  and  mingles  with  the  odors  of  incense.  Soldiers 
on  parade  may  stand  with  their  caps  on,  and  the  organist  keeps 
his  seat.  The  Protestant  may  keep  his  seat  or  his  feet,  though 
greatly  to  the  distress  of  the  devout,  who  would  put  him  down 
perforce  if  the  law  would  let  them. 

The  priest  breaks  the  hostia  into  three  pieces,  and,  putting 
a  small  one  into  the  cup,  eats  the  other  two.  He  scoops  up 
any  imaginary  crumbs  that  fall  in  breaking  the  wafer  with  the 
plate  if  he  have  no  scoop  for  the  purpose,  and  puts  them  into 
the  cup.  He  drinks  the  wine,  rinses  his  fingers,  first  with  un- 
consecrated  wine  and  then  with  water,  and  drinks  both  rinsings, 
so  as  to  be  sure  that  not  a  consecrated  particle  has  failed  of  its 
destination.  He  then  wipes  out  the  cup,  returns  the  spoon  and 
scoop,  and,  with  a  few  more  ceremonies,  closes  the  performance. 

It  would  take  too  much  time  to  describe  the  movements  of 
the  attendants  in  a  high  mass.  To  swing  the  censer,  to  carry 
backward  and  forward  two  ciriales,  tall  poles  of  silver  with  can- 
dles on  top,  to  hold  up  the  tip  of  the  priest's  garment  when  he 
kneels,  pouring  water,  handing  the  towel,  ringing  the  altar  bell, 
taking  part  in  responses,  moving  the  missal,  singing  part  of  the 
service,  etc.,  all  in  the  right  time,  is  quite  a  trade  to  learn. 

A  mass  may  be  said  in  the  time  it  takes  to  read  this  account 
of  it ;  and  the  high  mass  (where  every  word  is  sung  or  drawled, 
and  where  the  choir  sing  the  responses  which  the  attendant  oth- 
erwise makes)  is  often  avoided  on  account  of  its  length.  Sever- 
al times  during  the  mass  the  priest  turns  toward  the  audience, 
or  to  where  they  would  be  were  they  present,  and  says  Dom- 
inus  vobiscum — peace  be  with  you.  The  response  is,  Et  cum 
spiritu  tuo — and  with  your  spirit.  During  the  confession  in 
the  earlier  part  of  the  mass,  the  audience  give  three  light  blows  on 
their  breast.'  If  the  attendance  be  large,  a  strange,  hollow,  and 
impressive  sound  fills  the  church.  At  the  close  the  priest  says, 
Ite,  missa  est — go,  it  is  sent,  or  dismissed  (sc.  concio,  the  meet- 
ing). Hence  the  word  mass  ;  in  Latin,  missa ;  Spanish,  misa. 

I  visited  the  cemetery  at  Guaduas.  It  is  a  substantial  in- 
closure,  with  a  chapel  in  the  middle.  Most  of  the  bodies  are 
buried  in  the  ground,  but  the  bodies  of  the  richer  class  are 
placed  in  the  oven-like  bovedas.  In  one  case  a  husband  was 


WATEE-GIELS.  115 

immured  in  one,  leaving  another  beneath  him  yawning  for  his 
widow.  Here  I  saw  the  boveda  of  the  lamented  Acosta,  the 
mouth  closed  with  a  beautiful,  soft  rose-colored  stone,  which,  if 
it  would  endure  our  climate,  would  be  admired  for  monuments. 

Coffins  are  little  used  in  Guaduas.  In  the  chapel  I  saw  two 
coffin-shaped  boxes  painted  black,  with  a  skull  and  cross-bones 
in  white  on  every  side,  just  similar  to  that  which  I  saw  at  the 
prison.  Here,  too,  I  saw,  thrown  about  the  grounds,  fragments 
of  little  extemporaneous  biers  for  very  small  children,  and  in 
one  spot  a  little  pillow  and  some  coarse  rags,  that  touched  my 
heart  with  a  feeling  of  compassion.  The  cemetery  is  a  good 
one  for  this  country,  and  was  probably  originated  by  Colonel 
Joaquin  Acosta. 

Another  feature  of  Guaduas  remains  to  be  noticed.  It  is  the 
fountain  in  the  Plaza.  It  is  a  structure  resembling  a  monument, 
and  is  surrounded  with  a  wall  about  three  feet  high.  In  the 
front  and  ends  of  the  monument  are  the  mouths  of  iron  tubes, 
from  which  issue  streams  of  clear  water,  brought  from  the  neigh- 
boring hill  in  an  open,  drain-like  aqueduct,  called  an  acequia. 
The  fountain  itself  is  called  a  pila ;  the  same  word  is  applied  to 
a  baptismal  font. 

The  water-girls  come  here  with  a  large  earthen  jar — mucura 
— slung  so  as  to  rest  on  their  hips,  and  a  long  tube  in  their  hand. 
The  mucura  is  placed  on  the  low  wall,  one  end  of  the  long  reed 
— often  terminating  in  a  cow's  horn — applied  to  the  mouth  of 
one  of  the  iron  tubes,  and  thus  the  stream  conducted  to  the  mu- 
cura. When  a  mucura  is  nearly  full,  a  struggle  often  occurs  be- 
tween two  expectants,  each  desirous  to  fit  her  horn  to  the  spout 
as  soon  as  the  other  leaves  it. 

On  reaching  the  house  the  mucura  is  emptied  into  the  tinaja, 
which  is  a  much  larger  jar  with  a  wide  mouth.  Each  house  has 
a  sort  of  arch  of  burned  bricks,  built  generally  in  the  corridor, 
with  holes  to  receive  two  or  three  tinajas.  This  is  called  a  ti- 
najera.  The  tinajera  might  sustain  the  same  relation  to  the 
family  circle  here,  if  any  thing  does,  that  the  sacred  hearth  does 
at  the  North.  "  Pro  aris  et  focis,"  then,  must  be  translated,  in 
New  Granada,  "  For  the  little  saints'  cupboards  and  the  tina- 
jeras." 

I  assume  Guaduas  to  be  almost  exactly  1000  metres  in  alti- 


116  NEW  GRANADA. 

tude,  or  3281  feet,  with  a  mean  temperature  of  74°.  The  ther- 
mometer has  very  little  range,  and,  if  it  be  not  too  damp,  there 
can  not  be  on  the  face  of  the  earth  a  more  delightful  climate. 
There  is,  however,  some  goitre  here ;  but  I  believe  that  a  little 
iodine  water,  taken  daily,  would  prevent  it  or  cure  it.  I  thought 
I  saw  a  case  of  cretinism,  but  it  may  have  been  ordinary  idiocy. 
Goitre  is  called  coto,  and  a  person  whose  throat  is  thus  orna- 
mented is  a  cotudo. 

But  I  must  leave  Guaduas.  It  is  a  curious  illustration  of 
the  influence  of  the  customs  of  a  country  on  our  own  habits, 
that  I  took  leave  of  my  little  friends,  who  had  gained  a  large 
place  in  my  heart  by  their  amiable,  affectionate,  winning  ways, 
by  a  salutation  little  known  here — a  kiss.  After  considerably 
more  than  a  year's  experience  of  Granadan  life  and  ways,  I  met 
them  again,  to  my  great  delight,  with  an  equally  earnest  greet- 
ing— an  embrace.  I  can  not  say  that  kissing  is  used  at  all  here, 
but  embracing  is  in  almost  universal  use  in  case  of  long  separa- 
tions, with  inferiors,  superiors,  and  equals,  with  persons  of  the 
same  sex  or  different.  Some  illustrations  of  this  will  occur  far- 
ther on. 


CHAPTER  VIIL 

PLAIN   OF  BOGOTA. 

The  Negress  Francisca. — Ups  and  Downs. — Venta  at  Cuni,  and  Sausage  there. 
— Villeta.  —  Great  Tertulia  and  hard  Lodgings. — Excelsior. — The  Plain. — 
Traditions. — Fences. — The  Orejon. — Battle-fields. — Market-people. — Fonti- 
bon. — Entrance  to  Bogota. 

OUR  party  from  Guaduas  consisted  of  the  two  musicians,  who 
had  also  been  waiting  in  Guaduas  in  order  not  to  change  too 
suddenly  their  temperature  and  altitude,  and  two  persons  who 
had  arrived  in  a  subsequent  boat  the  night  before.  These  were 
a  Bogotano,  a  printer  by  the  name  of  Martinez,  and  a  boy  from 
Caraccas  named  Paez,  traveling  under  the  protection  of  Martinez. 
Altogether  we  had  11  beasts,  furnished  by  the  enterprising  ne- 
gress  Francisca — la  negra  Francisca,  as  they  always  call  her. 
She  meant  to  count  us  off  into  three  parties,  each  with  less  than 


LEAVING  GUADUAS.  117 

five  beasts,  and,  consequently,  each  obliged  to  pay  for  a  peon  as 
an  extra  beast.  She  would  send  with  us  three  peons,  and  we 
would  pay  for  14  beasts.  We  resisted.  I  sent  back  the  peon 
that  was  putting  my  trunks  in  their  encerados,  saying  that  I 
should  engage  another  set  of  mules  and  peon,  and  travel  by  my- 
self. She  gave  in,  and  sent  two  peons,  and  received  pay  for  but 
11  beasts.  She  had  great  difficulty  in  counting  the  money.  I 
had  to  pay  extra  for  my  saddle,  which  was,  at  last,  a  bad  one.  I 
have  lost  the  minute  I  made  of  the  prices ;  but  I  once  paid  $12  80 
for  three  beasts  and  peon  (four)  from  Bogota  to  Guaduas,  and 
$6  40  from  Guaduas  to  the  bodega  below  Honda.  These  were 
high  prices. 

We  started  at  9,  having  already  breakfasted.  So  early  a  start 
is  a  rare  proof  of  the  activity  of  the  negress  Francisca,  but  I  did 
not  then  appreciate  it  as  I  now  should,  after  more  experience  in 
Granadan  early  breakfasts.  We  soon  found  our  mules'  backs 
making  an  angle  of  from  20°  to  40°  with  the  horizon  while  they 
climbed  the  paved  zigzags — quingos — which  at  length  took  us 
to  where  we  could  see  the  valley  beneath  us  like  a  map. 

At  this  rate  we  might  reach  the  altitude  of  Bogota  before 
night,  but  here  came  a  change.  We  were  at  the  beginning  of 
an  enormous  descent,  and  we  could  plainly  see  that  if  the  road 
had  kept  farther  to  the  north,  it  might  have  wound  round  this 
great  hill,  and  saved  all  the  descent  and  most  of  the  ascent.  We 
were  now  at  the  Alto  del  Eaizal.  Once  at  the  bottom,  we  re- 
commenced the  ascent,  and  to  a  still  higher  point.  This  was 
the  Alto  del  Trigo.  Trigo  means  wheat,  and  it  is  quite  possi- 
ble that  wheat  will  grow  here,  for  it  is  at  an  altitude  of  6139 
feet,  according  to  Mosquera,  my  best  authority  on  this  road. 
We  have  risen,  then,  2839  feet.  Lewy  calls  it  4148  feet,  a  lit- 
tle less  than  a  mile,  which  is  probably  a  clerical  error  of  2000 
feet.  Mosquera  makes  a  similar  one  of  3000  feet  in  the  altitude 
of  Guaduas. 

Before  I  was  aware,  I  had  passed  the  hacienda — estate — of 
Palmar,  the  property  of  Mr.  Haldane,  the  "  Bishop  of  Gua- 
duas." I  was  sorry  not  to  have  seen  this  excellent  man,  who, 
it  is  said,  has  suffered  much  for  his  want  of  the  peculiar  tact 
necessary  in  managing  peons.  It  is  supposed  that  his  first  dif- 
ficulty originated  from  ejecting  a  tenant  for  living  with  a  worn- 


118  NEW  GKANADA. 

an  he  was  not  married  to.  The  ceremony  had  been  dispensed 
with  to  save  the  fee,  $5  60.  One  attempt  seems  to  have  been 
made  to  assassinate  the  family,  but  the  fearless  Scot  was  an 
overmatch  for  his  numerous  assailants.  A  new  cane-mill  was 
burned  to  the  ground  the  day  before  he  was  to  commence  opera- 
tions on  a  large  field  of  cane  just  ripe :  he  lost  his  crop.  Again 
he  engaged  in  the  culture  of  coffee,  and  the  last  I  heard  was,  he 
was  losing  his  entire  crop  for  want  of  a  will  to  gather  it. 

All  around  us  was  a  confused  crowd  of  hills,  separated  by 
deep,  narrow  valleys.  Every  where  on  the  sides  are  cottages 
and  fields,  but  no  roads  visible.  Many  of  the  fields  were  cane- 
patches — canaverales.  Cana  vera  would  mean  true  cane,  that 
is,  sugar-cane.  There  must  once  have  been  a  cane-field  at  Cape 
Canaveral,  on  the  coast  of  Florida,  or  Florida,  as  the  name  used 
to  be  before  Andrew  Jackson  reformed  the  pronunciation.  The 
cane  is  the  most  odious-looking  crop  that  ever  covered  the 
ground.  The  scanty  leaves  on  its  rigid  stalks  are  of  a  sickly 
yellowish  green,  and  before  the  beautiful  tassels  can  come  out 
to  wave  in  the  breeze,  the  stalk  is  cut  for  sugar  or  horse-feed. 
Nor  does  the  Canaveral  improve  on  a  closer  acquaintance,  as  it 
is  difficult  to  pass  through  it  without  endangering  the  face  and 
eyes  with  the  harsh,  stiff  foliage. 

At  the  Alto  del  Trigo  I  gave  my  horse,  into  the  charge  of 
Nepomuceno,  the  little  peon  of  little  Paez,  and  walked  down  the 
long  hill  to  Cuni.  Every  step  down  hill  is  two  steps  lost.  In 
descending  I  saw  a  tall  brick  chimney,  that  at  once  suggested 
thoughts  of  the  North.  It  proved  to  be  an  establishment  of 
Mr.  Wills,  an  Englishman,  who  has  bought  the  monopoly  of 
supplying  the  province  of  Bogota  with  spirits.  He  makes  it  of 
cane-juice,  which  he  extracts  by  water-power.  Mr.  Wills  has 
long  lived  here,  speaks  and  writes  the  language  well,  is  deeply 
interested  in  the  financial  prosperity  of  the  country,  and  was 
once  appointed  fiscal  agent  to  London.  He  did  not  go,  how- 
ever, as  the  creditors  there  expressed  a  preference  that  his  sal- 
ary should  be  added  to  their  scanty  dividends.  The  huge  ket- 
tle at  the  Bodega  de  Honda  was  for  this  establishment. 

Three  women  fearlessly  waded  across  the  brook  at  Cuni 
while  I  was  about  picking  my  way  across  on  some  stones.  They 
entered  the  first  house ;  I  followed  them,  and  saw  there  the 


VEKTA  AT  CUNI.  119 

most  perfect  specimen  of  a  venta  that  I  have  ever  seen.  You 
would  have  called  the  room  I  entered,  the  tienda,  a  miniature 
grocery,  but  it  was  less  and  more.  How  they  live  on  their 
slender  sales  I  can  not  guess ;  but  in  this  instance  they  had 
managed  to  get  up  almost  a  casa  claustrada,  a  perfect  house. 
Most  ventas  consist  of  but  a  single  room  except  the  tienda,  with 
perhaps  a  little  cooking-house  in  the  rear.  At  Cuni  there  is  a 
small  place  where  you  may  ride  into  the  patio,  and  there  is  food 
that  could  be  sold  for  horses,  but  gentlemen  rarely  buy,  even 
when  stopping  over  night. 

As  I  was  determined  to  wait  here  till  the  company  overtook 
me,  I  set  myself  to  watch  the  women.  They  called  for  a  cuar- 
tillo  of  ajiaco.  A  cuartillo  is  not  a  measure :  no  measures  of 
capacity  are  ever  used  in  New  Granada,  and  very  rarely  any 
other  weight  than  the  carga  of  from  200  to  250  of  our  pounds — 
a  mule-load.  A  cuartillo  is  a  fourth  of  a  dime,  and  is  the  small- 
est of  our  silver  coin.  Some  other  passers  at  this  time  showed 
me  the  only  copper  Granadan  coin  I  have  ever  seen.  Practi- 
cally the  cuartillo  is  subdivided  into  cuartos*,  but  you  must  lay 
out  your  whole  cuartillo  at  the  same  tienda.  Most  loaves  of 
bread  and  tablas  of  cheap  chocolate  are  made  to  sell  at  a  cuarto. 
A  half  cuartillo  is  a  mitad,  a  medio  is  a  coin  worth  half  a  dime, 
and  a  real  is  exactly  a  dime.  It  is  legally  divided  into  ten  cen- 
timos,  but  they  are  never  used. 

I  may  as  well  say  what  remains  to  be  said  on  coins  now. 
The  legal  meaning  of  the  word  peso  is  ten  dimes,  but  the  word 
is  always  used  for  eight  dimes.  The  traveler  must  never  doubt 
on  that  point,  but  he  is  very  apt  to  on  being  told  once  only.  If, 
after  a  verbal  agreement,  legal  pesos  of  ten  dimes  are  demanded, 
resist  the  demand;  it  is  an  attempt  to  cheat  that  they  never 
would  try  on  an  experienced  traveler.  Dollars  are  always  de- 
nominated pesos  fuertes,  duros,  or  fuertes,  except  at  auctions 
and  in  law  documents.  A  patacon  is  a  coin  of  eight  reals,  or  a 
transverse  section  of  green  plantain  fried  hard.  An  onza  is  a 
gold  coin  sold  at  about  sixteen  dollars.  They  have  a  piece  a 
little  heavier  than  our  double  eagle,  called  a  condor. 

Well,  numismatics  have  kept  us  till  the  poor  women's  ajiaco 
is  hot,  and  brought  in  and  set  in  a  wooden  ring  nailed  to  the 
counter  to  hold  the  round-bottomed  totuma  steady.  It  is  a 


120  NEW  GRANADA. 

broth  or  stew,  containing  pieces  of  potato  or  plantain,  and  per- 
haps, if  the  seller  be  generous,  a  mouthful  or  two  of  meat.  If 
you  had  any  confidence  in  the  cook,  the  composition  would  not 
be  bad  to  take.  There  was  a  single  spoon,  of  totuma  or  wood, 
in  the  dish,  with  which  each  one  took  a  mouthful  in  her  turn, 
till,  too  soon,  alas!  the  totuma  was  empty.  There  had  been 
in  it  only  a  moderate  allowance  for  one,  and  perhaps  it  was  a 
case  where  the  richer  of  the  three  was  dividing  her  little  all  with 
her  neighbors. 

A  still  more  amusing  meal  might  have  been  witnessed  some 
ten  years  since  on  this  spot.  A  New  York  hatter,  just  speak- 
ing a  few  words  of  Spanish,  who  has  been  tormented  and  half- 
starved  by  the  abominated  Granadan  cookery,  and  especially 
persecuted  with  cumin-seed,  has  his  eyes  gladdened  by  seeing 
suspended  in  this  same  tienda  some  veritable  sausages,  relleno 
(Bologna  sausage  is  salchicha).  An  idea  has  struck  him.  He 
has  seen  sausages  cooked ;  nay,  he  is  sure  he  can  cook  them. 
He  will  have  one  feast,  cost  what  trouble  it  may.  He  purchases 
quant,  suff.,  paying  in  inverse  ratio  to  the  Spanish  he  can  speak. 
This  is  the  easiest  part  of  the  task.  With  greater  difficulty  he 
secures  an  olla — home-made  earthen  cooking  vessel — an  olla  of 
any  form  in  which  frying  would  be  possible.  He  is  conducted 
by  the  astonished  natives  to  a  spot  yet  to  be  described,  a  Gran- 
adan kitchen.  By  broken  Spanish  and  gesticulation  he  super- 
intends operations  they  have  never  seen  before.  With  the  vig- 
ilance worthy  of  a  man  whose  life  has  been  attempted  a  dozen 
times  with  cumin-seed,  he  watches  against  the  introduction 
of  all  heterodox  ingredients,  and  of  that  in  particular.  A  visi- 
ble success  crowns  his  efforts.  Eagerly  he  sits  down  to  a  large 
table,  made  of  boards,  with  a  full  dish  before  him  of  sausages 
cooked  as  well  as  any  that  ever  came  from  his  mother's  kitchen. 
The  first  morsel  is  now  between  his  teeth,  and  he  discovers — 
oh,  horrors  ! — that  things  can  be  put  inside  of  a  sausage ! 

Steuart  describes  his  emotions  as  follows  :  "  Then  I  had  it 
dished,  while  my  delighted  orbs  of  vision  followed  the  direction 
of  the  knife,  which  immediately  divided  in  twain  the  much-prized 
morsel ;  but  oh !  horror  of  horrors  !  my  delicious  anticipations 
all  vanished  with  one  fell  stroke,  for  it  revealed  to  me  the  fact 
that  this,  too,  had  been  plentifully  besprinkled  with  the  always 
used  and  never-failing  cumin-seed!" 


LAYING  OUT  KOADS.  121 

For  myself,  I  must  admit  that  I  had  reached  Cuni  without 
tasting  any  thing  more  abominable  than  their  sausage.  It  was 
the  only  thing  that  I  found  myself  absolutely  incapable  of  eating. 
My  difficulty  was  with  the  garlic  ;  Steuart's  failure  was  attrib- 
uted by  the  natives  to  his  not  knowing  the  proper  way  to  cook 
them. 

At  this  same  venta  I  too  have  dined  with  the  loss  of  less  than 
an  hour  in  waiting,  and  with  a  bill  of  6  dimes  for  two.  It  would 
prove  one  of  the  best  places  to  pass  the  night  on  the  road,  but 
it  is  scarcely  possible  to  avoid  changing  beasts  at  Guaduas,  and 
passing  a  night  there,  so  that,  in  a  well-regulated  journey,  you 
must  be  here  nearer  midday.  But  an  ascent  toward  Guaduas 
from  this  point  between  2  and  4  P.M.  was  one  of  the  warmest 
pieces  of  traveling  I  have  ever  done  in  the  tropics. 

At  length  our  party  arrived,  and  I  mounted  and  proceeded. 
Soon  I  saw  a  piece  of  made  road.  It  looked  like  the  grading 
for  a  railroad,  only  it  had  a  sharp  elbow  in  it.  Nobody  travel- 
ed it,  for  it  was  much  easier  to  go  across  it  than  follow  it.  None 
but  a  North  American  can  give  New  Granada  carriage-roads,  for 
in  the  United  States  alone  are  extensive  portions  of  new  and 
cheap  roads  located  every  year.  Some  persons,  like  "Blind 
Jack"  of  Derbyshire,  England,  have  a  genius  for  locating  roads, 
and  such  a  genius  is  much  needed  here.  The  Granadino  runs 
his  road  straight  up  the  hill  and  down  on  the  other  side.  The 
European,  who  rarely  has  a  new  road  to  make,  and  knows  no 
want  of  money,  digs  straight  through  ;  the  Yankee  goes  round, 
and  the  Granadino  should  learn  of  him. 

Again  we  commenced  ascending.  On  the  Alto  de  Petaquero 
I  found  a  neglected  orange-tree,  and  as  I  liked  the  idea  of  or- 
anges to  be  had  for  the  gathering,  I  rode  under,  and  with  some 
trouble  filled  my  pockets.  To  my  surprise,  I  found  them  ap- 
parently of  another  species,  with  an  exceedingly  thick  rind,  and 
of  a  pulp  so  sour  as  to  be  entirely  uneatable.  They  are  good 
only  when  cooked  with  sugar,  or  the  juice  may  be  mixed  with 
water  and  sweetened.  This  is  the  Naranja  agria,  Citrus  vulgaris, 
often  called  the  Seville  orange. 

Another  steep  descent  brought  us  to  Yilleta,  the  only  real 
town  between  Guaduas  and  the  plain  of  Bogota.  Mosquera  puts 
it  at  the  altitude  of  2635  feet,  with  a  mean  temperature  of  77°. 


122  NEW   GRANADA. 

So  it  is  considerably  lower  than  Guaduas,  and  we  have  lost  all 
the  climbing  we  have  done  to-day. 

I  find,  in  two  measured  descents  that  we  make  in  ascending 
from  Honda  to  Villeta,  a  loss  of  4792  feet,  lacking  only  488  feet 
of  a  mile  perpendicular.  Add  to  this  the  descent  from  the  Alto 
del  Raizal,  and  that  from  the  Alto  de  Petaquero,  and  we  have  a 
sheer  loss  of  much  more  than  a  mile  climbing  up,  and  the  same 
quantity  of  climbing  down.  We  have  no  idea  of  such  a  waste 
of  force  combined  in  one  useless  ascent  and  descent.  Let  the 
principal  highway  of  a  nation  be  led  by  zigzags  from  the  base 
of  Mount  Washington  up  to  the  summit,  and  down  on  the  other 
side,  and  it  would  be  much  less  than  the  useless  descent  in  a 
journey  of  a  day  and  a  half,  given  in  the  mail-routes  as  11  hours, 
say  31  miles!  It  is  to  keep  this  precious  specimen  of  a  national 
road  in  the  power  of  the  greatest  city  of  New  Granada  that  the 
province  of  Bogota  is  made  to  extend  down  to  Pescaderias,  em- 
bracing a  people  that  are  as  far  removed  from  the  Bogotanos  in 
customs  and  interests  as  in  climate. 

Villeta  stands  on  the  banks  of  the  Rio  Negro,  which  empties 
into  the  Magdalena  near  Buenavista.  The  future  carriage-road 
to  the  river  may  run  through  this  place,  but  not  through  Guad- 
uas. That,  however,  is  in  a  broader,  greener,  and  much  more 
beautiful  valley  than  this,  and  has  the  advantage  of  being  cool- 
er, so  that,  though  farther  from  Bogota,  it  is  much  more  visited. 
Villeta  yields  much  more  sirup  and  sugar.  But  I  must  ex- 
plain these  terms.  The  sirup  is  thin  and  watery,  and  bears  the 
name  of  miel.  Molasses  drained  from  sugar  is  miel  de  purga. 
Thick  sirup  is  amibar;  all  three  are  melado.  Honey  (which 
is  not  here  a  table  article)  must  be  specified  as  of  bees  to  be  un- 
derstood— miel  de  abejas.  All  the  sugar  made  in  Villeta  is  of 
the  cheap  form,  which  is  called  panela.  It  is  sirup  sufficiently 
concentrated  to  "grain,"  or  form  fine  crystals  without  giving 
rise  to  molasses.  It  is  cast  in  the  form  of  bricks.  It  is  often 
one  third  the  price  of  coarse  brown  loaf-sugar,  which  alone  bears 
the  name  of  azucar,  and  sometimes  is  a  dime  and  a  half  per 
pound.  Faint  approximations  to  white  sugar  are  common,  but 
any  that  would  bear  the  name  of  loaf-sugar  with  us  is  very  rare. 

All  this  while  we  were  waiting  dinner  at  the  best  posada  or 
venta  in  the  place.  I  sallied  forth  over  the  rough-paved  streets, 


VILLETA.  123 

and  came  to  the  Plaza  and  the  church,  with  its  rude-painted  im- 
ages, and  coarse,  flat-looking  pictures.  The  aspect  of  the  church 
was  like  that  of  Guaduas,  but  poorer.  The  only  thing  of  inter- 
est that  I  saw  was  an  Orchid  flower  lying  at  the  feet  of  a  saint. 
It  was  the  second  flower  of  that  Order  that  I  had  seen  in  the 
country,  but  I  did  not  venture  to  take  it.  Returning  from  church 
I  came  upon  the  school.  It  was  taught  by  an  intelligent  lad  of 
seventeen,  dressed  in  neat  but  dilapidated  clothes.  The  room 
was  furnished  after  the  Lancasterian  plan,  but  the  teacher  seem- 
ed to  have  no  idea  of  any  thing  farther  than  the  mechanical  pro- 
cesses of  reading,  writing,  and  praying.  I  have  seen  many  such 
schools  since :  few  are  much  better,  none  much  worse. 

I  returned  to  dinner,  but  it  was  not  ready.  Time  enough  had 
passed  to  have  slaughtered  a  bullock,  and  cooked  a  dinner  from 
it  and  eaten  it.  I  suspected  that  they  designed  detaining  us  all 
night,  but  when  our  baggage  had  passed  on  they  gave  up  and 
brought  in  dinner.  It  was  no  great  affair  after  all,  but  we  fin- 
ished it  so  as  to  mount  about  5  o'clock. 

We  followed  up  the  Rio  Negro,  crossed  Guama  bridge,  pass- 
ed Guayabal  and  Mauve.  About  here  I  learned  a  new  fact  in 
Natural  History.  It  appears  that  some  of  our  beasts  can  not 
drink  with  the  bit  in  their  mouth — a  most  vexatious  circum- 
stance, that  has  many  a  time  since  brought  me  to  my  feet  at  a 
most  inconvenient  spot,  on  the  muddy  bank  of  a  stream.  One 
thing  I  am  sure  of:  any  horse  that  I  should  ride  much  would 
acquire  this  useful  accomplishment  in  one  day  were  I  sure  of 
plenty  of  drinking-places ;  but  where  you  hire  a  beast  for  two 
days  it  is  for  your  interest  to  humor  him. 

It  was  now  dark,  and  we  would  gladly  have  found  (jur  bag- 
bage  halted,  but  they  had  passed  on  with  a  diligence  as  yet  in- 
explicable. We  now  entered  on  the  Salitre,  a  patch  of  road  that 
is  sometimes  so  bad  as  to  cost  half  a  day  to  pass  what  we  un- 
consciously crossed  after  dark.  At  last  we  arrived  at  a  venta 
filled  with  a  noisy  crowd,  and  there  we  found  all  our  trunks 
piled  up  under  the  eaves  in  a  heap.  It  consisted  of  a  single 
room  besides  the  tienda.  Within,  one  or  two  tallow  candles,  in  a 
rude  wooden  chandelier,  shed  a  dim  light  upon  a  dense  mass  of 
men  and  women.  I  made  my  way  through  it  to  where  two  or 
three  were  sitting  at  a  table  playing  a  sort  of  cards  unknown  to 


124  NEW  GRANADA. 

Hoyle  in  number,  name,  or  form.  Cups,  cudgels,  golds,  and 
swords — espadas — were  the  four  suits,  and  I  believe  the  num- 
ber of  cards  was  40. 

But  there  was  music  too,  vocal  and  instrumental,  and,  I  be- 
lieve, dancing.  The  principal  musical  instrument  was  the  tiple, 
a  diminutive  of  the  bandola,  which  is  itself  a  reduction  of  the 
common  guitar.  The  length  of  this  implement  of  torment  is  a 
little  more  than  a  foot,  and  I  do  not  think  the  strings  are  ever 
shortened  by  stopping  them,  as  in  the  guitar  and  violin.  This 
banjo,  jun.,  is  easily  played,  when  once  in  tune,  by  drawing  your 
fingers  across  it  in  any  manner,  only  keeping  time.  It  costs 
only  two  or  three  dimes,  and  the  number  that  infest  the  land,  not 
only  in  the  tiendas,  but  by  the  roadside,  is  dreadful.  The  tiple 
was  accompanied  by  an  alfandoque,  a  small  joint  of  guadua,  with 
numerous  pegs  across  the  cavity  within.  It  contains  some  peb- 
bles or  grains  of  maize.  In  a  word,  it  is  the  most  stupendous 
rattle-box  ever  clutched  by  grown-up  baby.  The  word  alfando- 
que also  applies  to  a  composition  of  sugar,  full  of  cavities,  so 
that  it  crumbles  in  the  mouth  like  the  candy  they  call  kisses ; 
but  alfandoque  is  in  the  size  of  biscuits. 

The  eagerness  of  our  peons  to  press  on  was  now  explained. 
The  traveler  must  guard  against  passing  near  night  a  place 
where  there  is  a  holiday  or  merry-making,  if  his  baggage  is  in 
the  rear.  Some  unforeseen  accident  will  inevitably  happen  to 
beast  or  peon,  and  you  will  sleep  without  your  baggage. 

I  was  glad  to  retreat  from  the  crowd,  and,  as  I  was  doing  so, 
I  trod  on  something  soft.  Thinking  it  a  dog  or  cat,  I  took  off 
my  foot  immediately,  but  there  came  not  up  that  instantaneous 
cry  of  brute  anguish  that  I  expected,  but  in  its  stead,  an  in- 
stant after,  the  wail  of  a  naked  babe,  that  its  ostrich  mother  had 
left  to  creep  beneath  the  feet  of  the  unshod  crowd,  and  now  was 
under  the  heel  of  my  heavy  riding-boot ! 

I  felt  sick,  and  when  we  met  in  council  I  found  we  were  all 
desperate.  I  alone  had  a  hammock.  Our  baggage  was  so  mix- 
ed, and  the  peons  were  so  busy,  that  we  had  hard  work  to  get 
our  night  fixings.  The  Hollanders  declared  that  they  would 
not  sleep  there.  They  took  their  bayetones  and  went  to  anoth- 
er house,  and  came  back  again.  There  was  a  trough  of  molas- 
ses in  the  back  porch,  with  a  cover  on  it.  This  made  a  bed  for 


FKOLIC  AT  A  POSADA.  125 

the  little  Venezolano.  Martinez  spread  his  duds  (trastos)  on 
the  ground,  with  a  mat  set  up  on  edge  to  keep  the  cold  mount- 
ain wind  off  his  head.  Over  him  I  hung  in  my  hammock,  and 
when  I  became  accustomed  to  the  noise,  I  slept  like  a  prince. 

I  awoke  in  the  morning,  and  found  the  Hollanders  sleeping 
at  last,  packed  in  together  like  two  pigs,  on  the  rough  stones  in 
front  of  the  house,  one  bayeton  serving  them  for  mattress,  like 
a  feather  on  a  rock,  while  the  other  served  as  blanket.  They 
did  not  complain  so  much  of  their  bed  as  of  that  infernal  sere- 
nade. The  performers  were  partly  dispersed  abroad,  and  part- 
ly spread  over  the  floor,  sleeping  in  various  attitudes. 

Without  waiting  for  even  a  cup  of  chocolate,  we  took  leave 
of  the  venta  with  a  polyglot  of  valedictories  that  would  not  be 
worth  the  trouble  and  erudition  necessary  to  record  them.  Not 
far  from  here  I  passed  a  Cinchona  bush  in  flower ;  it  was  a  use- 
less species. 

We  breakfasted,  after  passing  Chimbi,  at  Escobal  or  Agua- 
larga.  The  meal  was  of  fried  beef  and  fried  eggs,  with  fried 
plantains.  Soon  after  setting  out  again  a  fine  rain  came  upon 
us.  I  put  on  my  encauchado,  and  lent  my  umbrella.  Soon  we 
came  to  dry  ground,  where  no  rain  had  fallen,  and  then  again 
we  were  in  the  rain.  When  it  stopped,  I  found  myself  in  Aser- 
radero,  a  spot  that  strongly  reminded  me  of  home.  There  was 
a  house  more  Yankee-looking  than  usual,  some  grass  fenced  in, 
and  even  the  plants  seemed  to  present  a  different  aspect.  One 
little  flower  that  there  attracted  my  attention  would  have  inter- 
ested me  more  had  I  then  known  its  significance.  It  occurs  in 
all  places  above  a  particular  height,  and  marks  the  boundary  of 
the  tierra  fria,  the  cold  region,  as  we  ascend.  It  is  a  flower  just 
like  a  dandelion,  but  it  is  stemless  ;  and  if  you  would  find  the 
connection  between  the  flower  and  leaf,  you  must  dig  for  it.  It 
is  the  achicoria  of  the  natives,  Aschyrophorus  sessiliflorus.  It 
extends  down  to  a  height  of  about  7900  feet  above  the  level  of 
the  sea — a  very  respectable  altitude. 

Long  before  reaching  here  we  could  have  seen  the  outer  rim 
of  the  great  plain  of  Bogota  rising  before  us  like  the  walls  of  a 
fortress,  and  we  seemed  to  be  approaching  a  very  difficult  place 
to  surmount  them.  If  there  is  a  good  place,  I  have  never  heard 
of  it.  Such  a  discovery  will  be  necessary  to  a  railroad,  unless 


126  NEW  GRANADA. 

the  engineer  can  teach  locomotives  to  climb  like  ants  or  jump 
like  crickets.  Even  an  inclined  plane  would  be  more  difficult  to 
make  than  a  hoistway.  Our  zigzag  road  was  now  as  steep  as 
stairs,  and  turned  continually.  But  never  did  I  expect  to  see 
such  a  vegetation.  As  I  ascended,  it  seemed  almost  to  shift 
past  me.  Among  the  flowers  were  species  of  the  green-house 
genera,  Begonia  and  Fuchsia.  A  bush  without  flowers,  but  with 
large  leaves  and  very  large  clusters  of  little  berries  or  nuts, 
particularly  puzzled  me.  It  was  the  strangest  reduction  of  a 
poppy,  Bocconia  frutescens. 

At  length  the  ascent  remitted  its  severity,  and  then  ceased 
entirely  at  El  Roble.  We  found  here  a  venta,  at  which  we 
stopped  a  while.  Even  then  I  could  not  believe  that  we  were  at 
the  altitude  of  Bogota,  but  we  were  and  more.  It  was  now  not 
much  past  noon,  but  since  dark  last  night  we  had  ascended  more 
than  a  mile  perpendicular !  We  are  here  at  an  altitude  of  8858 
feet,  according  to  Humboldt,  or  more  than  300  feet  higher  than 
the  summit  of  Mount  Washington.  Then  we  came  down  a 
gentle  slope  without  rock,  and  at  last  the  vast  plain  burst  upon 
our  eyes.  It  is  the  strangest  spectacle  to  the  traveler ;  it  seems 
incredible  that,  after  such  an  ascent,  level  ground  can  be  reach- 
ed without  hours  of  descent.  Before  us  the  plain  stretched  thir- 
ty miles  to  the  eastward,  and  having  an  extent  of  about  sixty 
miles  from  Suesca  on  the  north  to  Cibate'  on  the  south.  It 
has  been  calculated  to  contain  1378.3312172  square  miles,  or 
220,533  acres  and  a  few  square  inches  over. 

All  this  vast  plain  has  been  leveled  by  water ;  few  doubt  but 
that  it  was  once  a  lake.  If  not,  it  has  been  a  hollow  of  un- 
known depth,  now  filled  with  alluvium.  So  strongly  marked  is 
the  dividing  line  between  the  hills,  that  form  the  rim  of  the  ba- 
sin, and  the  plain  within,  that  the  idea  of  a  lake  rises  involun- 
tarily to  the  mind  of  the  unreflecting,  and  he  calls  the  knolls  ris- 
ing out  of  the  plain  near  its  edges  islands,  and  the  hills  them- 
selves shores. 

The  Indians  had  a  tradition  that  Chia,  Yubecayguaya,  or 
Huitaca,  a  beautiful  but  malicious  divinity,  flooded  it,  driving 
the  inhabitants  to  the  mountains  for  their  lives.  Bochica,  her 
husband,  called  also  Zuhe  and  Nemqueteba,  transformed  her  into 
the  moon,  struck  the  barrier  ridge  with  his  staff,  made  the  Falls 


THE  GREAT  PLAIN.  127 

of  Tequendama,  drained  the  plains,  and  then  retired  to  Sogomo- 
so,  where  he  reigned  for  2000  years. 

What  was  the  height  of  the  water  of  the  supposed  lake? 
Tradition,  of  course,  will  say  that  its  waters  were  drained  off. 
But  of  this  I  found  no  evidence  at  all,  although  in  other  lake 
plains  north  of  here  I  can  not  doubt  the  fact.  But  if  a  lake  was 
ever  drained  off  the  surface  of  the  whole  plain  of  Bogota,  it  must 
have  been  very  shallow  indeed  in  proportion  to  its  extent. 

To  the  Bogotanos  this  plain  is  the  joy  of  the  whole  earth,  and 
the  fact  that  nothing  will  grow  here  but  wheat,  barley,  grass,  and 
a  few  roots,  weighs  nothing  with  them.  So  chill  is  its  climate 
that  frost  may  visit  it  in  any  season  of  the  year.  A  sufficient 
succession  of  cloudy  days  and  clear  nights  might  at  any  month 
congeal  its  whole  surface.  Now  it  stretched  away  before  us  al- 
most a  dead  level,  with  patches  of  water  toward  the  centre,  but 
elsewhere  so  parched  with  drought  that  it  seems  an  Illinois  prai- 
rie in  October,  and  the  temperature  corresponded.  It  never  as- 
sumes all  the  verdure  of  an  extra-tropical  spring  just  escaped 
from  the  prison  of  winter,  but  by  reason  of  the  transparency  of 
the  air,  the  strong  setting  of  the  picture  in  a  framework  of  mount- 
ain, and  the  indescribable  roughness  of  the  country  just  passed 
over,  the  impression  made  by  this  plain  can  neither  be  effaced 
nor  described. 

We  began  to  trot,  and  I  found  my  breath  failing  me.  I  was 
obliged  to  beg  the  company  to  slacken  their  pace,  for  I  could 
not  gather  strength  to  pull  my  reins,  and  was  very  near  falling. 

We  had  passed  our  posada  without  seeing  it,  and  had  to  re- 
turn. It  was  a  very  unpromising  affair  as  to  the  exterior,  with 
not  a  window  to  the  street,  but  on  riding  through  the  huge  por- 
tal we  found  ourselves  in  a  casa  claustrada,  with  an  enormous 
patio.  All  the  doors  of  the  establishment  opened  into  it,  even 
that  of  the  tienda,  which,  in  every  other  venta,  opens  into  the 
street.  A  small  yard,  six  feet  square  in  the  centre,  protected 
some  shrubs. 

Some  macaws — guacamayas,  Ara  glauca — and  a  monkey  blind 
of  one  eye,  helped  to  people  the  patio.  But  what  most  interest- 
ed me  was  a  bird  a  little  less  than  a  turkey,  called  a  pauji.  It 
was  remarkable  for  a  sort  of  ventriloquial  voice,  at  first  appear- 
ing to  come  from  a  great  distance,  and  then  appearing  rather  to 


128  NEW  GRANADA. 

resemble  the  humming  that  a  stick  makes  when  rapidly  whirled 
in  the  air.  It  was  probably  Ourax  alector. 

Our  posada,  which  bears  the  name  of  El  Botello  (not  the  bot- 
tle— la  botella),  was  in  reality  better  than  ordinary,  and,  were  it 
provided  with  stables  and  horsefeed,  would  be  almost  a  country 
inn.  One  thing  it  could  not  give  me — a  place  to  hang  my  ham- 
mock in-doors,  and  it  was  too  cold  in  the  corredor.  They  tried 
to  make  up  a  bed  to  satisfy  me,  but  I  found  it  very  hard.  We 
had  a  very  tolerable  dinner  and  breakfast,  and,  on  the  whole,  I 
was  much  pleased  with  the  place. 

On  arising  in  the  morning  I  was  surprised  to  find  the  whole 
patio  filled  with  carga  mules,  which  gave  me  an  exalted  opinion 
of  the  popularity  of  El  Botello.  Just  at  this  moment  an  ex- 
planation comes  to  my  mind  after  I  had  long  forgotten  the  fact. 
Wednesday  is  market-day  at  the  town  of  Facatativa,  and  this 
assemblage  of  beasts,  laden  chiefly  with  skins  of  miel,  could  oc- 
cur on  one  morning  only  in  the  week.  They  must  have  been 
nearly  a  hundred  in  number. 

I  committed  a  great  error  in  starting  from  here  across  the 
plain  without  greasing  my  face,  and  particularly  my  lips. 
Grease  is  a  good  preservative  against  the  effects  of  sun  and 
wind.  The  wind  here  is  often  very  dry,  and  you  may  pay 
dearly  for  kissing  it.  I  have  had  my  lips  bleed  for  weeks  after 
passing  it,  even  with  the  wind  at  my  back  all  the  way.  Many 
protect  themselves  by  cloth,  as  if  against  cold,  but  it  seems  to 
me  less  convenient,  and  even  less  agreeable,  to  be  so  bun- 
dled up. 

We  started  late  from  El  Botello,  and  in  bad  order.  First, 
they  had  our  baggage  so  thoroughly  mixed  that,  to  get  at  my 
two  cargas  on  arriving  at  Bogota,  it  was  necessary  to  unload 
four  beasts.  All  my  exhortations  at  El  Botello  to  put  my 
property  by  itself  were  unavailing.  Second,  part  of  the  mules 
were  suffered  to  start  before  all  were  loaded.  This  was  prob- 
ably designedly  done,  to  give  the  peons  a  chance  to  chat  with 
the  market-girls  at  Facatativa ;  and  at  last  it  happened  that  we 
found  part  of  our  cargas  entirely  without  a  peon,  and  were 
obliged  to  drive  them  through  Facatativa  ourselves,  or  risk 
losing  them.  One  dodged  between  two  houses  into  a  field,  and 
I  had  a  hard  ride  to  drive  him  out,  as  my  poor  mule  preferred 


FACATATIVA.  129 

rather  to  share  the  spoil  with  him  than  to  make  haste,  and  I 
wore  no  spurs. 

Then,  again,  when  clear  of  the  town,  we  resolved  to  halt  and 
wait  a  reunion  of  all  our  forces ;  but  here  occurred  a  difficulty : 
not  one  of  the  party  knew  the  word  to  use  to  command  the 
mules  to  stop;  not  the  Venezuelano,  nor  even  the  Bogotano. 
The  word  used  here  is  o-5-is-te  ;  in  other  places,  sh  /  in  others, 
chU-to-o.  We  adopted  a  better  expedient :  we  bought  a  half 
dime  of  maize  on  the  stalk  (it  can  scarcely  ripen  here),  and 
threw  it  to  the  famishing  animals,  and  they  waited  contentedly 
till  the  peons  arrived  with  the  remainder. 

Facatativa  is  a  large,  poorly-built  town,  with  a  population 
chiefly  of  Indian  blood.  Its  main  support  must  be  derived  from 
the  herdsmen  of  the  great  plain ;  perhaps  as  a  place  for  an  in- 
termediate sale  of  miel  and  other  articles,  that  are  brought  here 
from  the  tierra  caliente  on  mules,  and  which  can  be  carried  on 
carts  to  Bogota.  A  rude  cart  rumbling  past  El  Botello  quite 
excited  me.  The  road  here  is  even  too  good,  for  the  cost  spent 
on  it  would  have  done  much  toward  making  a  wheel-road  to 
the  Magdalena.  Carriages  come  out  here  to  bring  or  meet  trav- 
elers, who  are  made  to  pay  roundly  for  it.  The  distance  is 
stated  as  low  as  seven  leagues ;  the  post-office  calls  it  nine.  I 
reckon  it  as  twenty-eight  miles. 

As  we  proceeded  we  noticed  a  saw-mill  on  the  left,  not  far 
from  Facatativa,  and  where  trees  and  water-power  would  seem 
nearly  equally  scarce.  I  know  of  but  one  other  in  all  the  coun- 
try. It  is  at  Tequendama,  and,  like  this,  is  accessible  to  Bo- 
gota by  wheels.  In  fact,  carriages  and  carriage-roads  seem  a 
necessary  prerequisite  to  saw-mills,  and  it  is  not  strange  that 
there  should  be  none  off  this  plain.  And  how  many  interests 
of  domestic  economy  depend  on  the  existence  of  saw-mills ! 

Near  the  mill  I  saw  a  fence  made  of  the  trunks  of  tree-ferns 
set  up  on  end.  I  recognized  them  without  difficulty,  although 
I  had  not  yet  seen  them  growing.  A  botanist  would  fancy  a 
fence  of  so  strange  a  material ;  here  it  was  merely  economy,  as 
the  shell  of  the  trunk  seems  quite  durable.  They  call  tree-ferns 
here  palo-bobo,  fool-wood. 

Soon  I  caught  at  a  passion-flower  that  was  not  a  passion-flow- 
er, for  it  had  assumed  a  form  so  distorted  as  to  take  the  name 

I 


130  NEW   GRANADA. 

of  Tacksonia.  This  new  Passiflorate  genus  has  numerous  spe- 
cies here,  several  of  which  yield  a  fruit  known  at  Bogota  as  cu- 
ruba. Some  of  them  are  very  fine  when  well  sweetened.  The 
seed  is  swallowed  with  the  aril,  which  is  the  only  edible  part. 
The  curuba  of  the  Cauca  is  a  real  Passiflora,  which,  if  not  a 
variety  of  the  P.  quadrangularis,  known  in  our  green-houses, 
and  here  called  the  badea,  is  certainly  close  to  it.  Both  are 
huge  fruits,  as  large  as  a  small  watermelon ;  but  of  the  badea 
you  eat  the  walls  of  the  fruit  itself  as  well  as  the  arils,  while  of 
this  curuba,  as  of  that  of  Bogota,  only  the  aril  serves.  The  ut- 
ter neglect  of  cultivation  of  fruits  gives  rise  to  all  my  doubts  as 
to  these  being  varieties,  and  what  adds  to  my  difficulty  is  that 
I  never  have  been  able  to  obtain  a  ripe  badea. 

Another  Passiflora,  probably  P.  ligularis,  yields  the  grana- 
dilla,  one  of  the  very  best  fruits  unknown  to  the  New  York  mar- 
kets. The  walls  of  the  fruit  are  thin,  and,  when  broken  open, 
are  clear  and  dry ;  and  the  mechanical  process  of  taking  out  the 
rich,  juicy,  sweet  arils  with  a  fork  or  spoon  is  in  itself  a  very 
agreeable  one.  The  granadilla,  and  all  the  Tacksonias,  are 
plants  of  high  lands,  and  only  the  badea  and  the  Caucan  curuba 
grow  in  Tierra  Caliente.  All  are  vines  that  will  flower  in  our 
green-houses,  but  all  cast  their  fruit  there.  Query :  Would  not 
P.  quadrangularis  perfect  its  fruit  if  kept  at  a  temperature  be- 
low 70°  ? 

A  few  words  more  will  finish  all  I  have  to  say  of  the  Passi- 
florate plants  of  this  country.  Several  have  very  small  fruits 
and  flowers.  One,  with  a  large,  pretty  flower,  has  a  tolerable 
fruit,  with  a  very  hard  shell.  Another,  with  a  viscid  calyx,  has 
a  fruit  so  thin  that  it  is  called  paper  granadillo — granadillo  de 
papel.  I  found  one  Passiflora  that  was  an  erect  bush,  and  anoth- 
er still  was  a  tree  !  it  was  so  high  that  I  had  to  stand  on  my 
horse's  back  to  reach  the  lowest  limbs. 

I  noticed  another  vine  on  the  plain  terminated  with  enormous 
clusters  of  large,  beautiful ,  flowers.  It  was  an  Alstroemeria. 
Other  species  grow  here,  but  none  so  splendid.  I  found,  also 
growing  by  the  road-side,  Tropseolum  majus,  known  to  children 
at  home  as  "  stertian,"  and  also  two  or  three  other  species.  How 
came  the  stertian  in  our  gardens?  Who  sent  the  seeds  from 
this  plain,  and  whither,  and  why  ?  What  merit  has  diffused  the 


FENCES.  131 

little  vine  over  the  world  ?  Lastly,  here  an  enormous  herb,  or 
a  stout  shrub,  raises  its  head  six  or  eight  feet  high,  crowned  with 
a  profusion  of  cream-colored  pendent  solanate  flowers  eight  inch- 
es long.  It  is  Datura  arborea,  known  as  borrachero,  or  the  in- 
toxicator.  There  is  a  yellow-flowered  variety,  and  another  spe- 
cies with  smaller  red  flowers — D.  sanguinea — is  cultivated  in 
some  patios  in  Bogota. 

The  plain  appeared  so  much  like  prairie  that  I  often  forget 
myself.  It  is  inclosed  from  the  road  by  ditches,  often  made  of 
two  rows  of  deep  square  pits,  alternating  with  each  other,  so  that 
the  idea  of  leaping  it  suggests  instantly  that  of  a  broken  bone. 
The  arrangement  is  exactly  that  of  two  rows  of  cells  in  a  honey- 
comb. Farther  on  I  saw  a  man  making  or  renewing  a  ditch  of 
the  ordinary  description.  He  scooped  the  earth  up  with  a  pad- 
dle, or  his  hands,  and  put  it  into  a  piece  of  hide,  in  which  he 
threw  it  upon  the  bank.  At  other  places  a  thick,  high  wall  of 
rammed  earth — tapias — or  of  large  unburned  bricks — adobe — 
serves  as  a  fence,  but  it  must  have  a  roof  of  burned  tiles,  or  a 
protection  of  twigs  of  bushes,  laid  on  transversely  and  covered 
with  sod. 

Fences  are  rare  in  this  country.  I  reached  Guaduas  before 
learning  the  Spanish  for  fence.  Very  few  indeed  are  of  wood. 
I  asked  a  man  the  reason  of  this,  and  he  replied  that  wood  would 
be  stolen  for  fuel.  I  suggested  that  at  home  the  study  of  the  Bi- 
ble in  Sabbath-schools  had  been  found  an  effectual  preventive  of 
petty  thefts,  when  severer  remedies  of  law,  and  other  man-traps, 
had  proved  of  no  avail.  He  replied  that  he  had  been  informed 
that  we  used  mutilated  copies  of  the  Bible  in  these  schools.  He 
thought  the  measure  questionable,  even  for  so  laudable  an  object 
as  to  protect  fences.  This  man  is  one  of  the  few  gentlemen  who 
still  keep  up  their  fasts,  confess,  and  commune.  He  is  an  ex- 
ception. 

At  one  place,  in  an  immense  pasture,  we  saw  hundreds  of  cat- 
tle, and  some  men  on  horseback  examining  them  or  catching 
some,  but  the  scene  of  operations  was  too  far  from  the  road  for 
me  to  observe  them  sufficiently.  As  the  mode  is  different  there 
and  in  the  great  plains  east  of  Bogota  from  that  practiced  here  in 
the  Cauca,  I  am  sorry  not  to  have  seen  both. 

The  rich  proprietors  on  this  plain  are  not  highly  respected  by 


132 


NEW  GRANADA. 


THE   OREJON. 


the  gentry  of  keener  wits  and  lighter  purses,  who  call  them 
Orejones,  or  big-eared ;  but  why,  I  really  can  not  tell.  They 
describe  them  as  big,  burly,  brutal,  and  butcher-like,  with  a 
characteristic  face  recognized  every  where,  and  which  marks  the 
bearer  as  rich  and  stupid.  But  I  have  great  fear  of  doing  them 
an  injustice,  and  an  impression  that  a  nearer  acquaintance  with 
them  would  bring  out  some  excellent  qualities. 

The  above  sketch  is  by  one  of  these  characters,  and  is  as 
bad  as  it  well  can  be  and  be  faithful,  but  faithful  it  is.  It  is 
exactly  as  I  saw  him  when  I  found  him  paused  on  his  steed 
near  a  low,  tile-roofed  venta  on  the  Sabana,  as  they  call  the 
great  plain. 

Let  us  study  him.     In  every  feature  of  his  face  is  written 


FARMER  OF  THE  PLAIN.  133 

OEEJON  ;  and  the  handkerchief  tied  on  under  his  hat  but  makes 
the  expression  of  his  countenance  the  more  pitiable.  His  broad 
jipijapa  hat  is  covered  with  a  case  (funda)  of  red  oiled  cloth,  and 
is  held  on  by  a  borboquejo  or  string  passing  under  the  chin. 
His  ruana  is  of  wool,  a  mixture  of  a  dingy  color  and  bright 
stripes.  His  nether  man  is  encased  in  zamarras  of  goat-skin 
with  the  hair  on.  They  are  made  like  the  legs  of  pantaloons, 
connected  only  by  the  waistband.  The  feet  are  armed  with  a 
formidable  spur,  and  thrust  into  brass  or  copper  slipper-shaped 
stirrups,  which  cost  from  eight  to  twelve  dollars.  Into  our  or- 
dinary stirrup  of  the  north — estribo  de  aro,  hoop-stirrup — he 
would  not  put  his  foot. 

His  Rosinante  is  of  the  meek,  tame  kind  when  he  has  no  fear 
of  the  spur,  but  knows  what  it  is  to  be  severely  ridden,  and  has 
more  long  fasts  in  the  year  than  his  master.  Under  the  bridle 
is  a  halter — jaquima — the  end  secured  to  the  saddle ;  it  serves 
oftenest  to  confine  the  horse  by  the  simple  contrivance  of  pull- 
ing its  broad,  worsted-worked  head-piece  down  over  the  eyes. 
Little  is  seen  of  the  saddle  save  the  well-filled  pockets  on 
which  the  rider's  hands  now  rest,  and  the  back  strap — arretran- 
ca — so  useful  in  riding  down  stairs  to  tierra  caliente.  Well, 
you  have  seen  the  worst  of  him.  The  best  is,  that  in  morals  he 
is  on  a  par  with,  or  above  the  average  character  of  those  who 
speak  so  lightly  of  him. 

Again  we  saw  great  stacks  of  wheat,  and  men  thrashing  wheat 
beneath  the  feet  of  mules,  and  others  throwing  it  up  against  the 
wind,  a  primitive  mode  of  separating  it  from  the  chaff.  This 
plain  is  the  great  wheat-field  of  the  republic  ;  and,  although  in 
all  the  colder  parts  it  will  grow  readily,  it  is  only  in  these  an- 
cient beds  of  mountain  lakes  that  the  land  is  level  enough  to  ad- 
mit of  the  rude  cultivation  practiced  here.  Off  the  plain  of  Bo- 
gota I  have  never  seen  a  plow,  and  only  once  there  have  I  seen 
one  that  threw  up  such  a  furrow  that  you  could  tell  which  way 
the  plow  had  been  drawn.  In  other  words,  the  plow  here  is  in 
the  primitive  state,  an  instrument  for  scratching,  not  for  turning 
the  soil. 

Now  we  have  on  our  right,  near  the  shore  of  the  plain,  a  small 
town,  with  its  little  church,  not  half  a  mile  from  the  road.  It  is 
Serrezuela,  the  head  of  a  little  district  of  1094  souls.  Next  we 


134  NEW  GRANADA. 

come  to  Cuatro  Esquinas — the  Four  Corners.  Here  are  several 
houses  at  the  junction  of  our  road  with  one  from  La  Mesa,  which 
enters  the  plain  at  Barro  Blanco.  This,  too,  is  macadamized  to 
the  edge  of  the  plain.  We  have  been  coming  from  the  north- 
west, and  La  Mesa  lies  due  west  from  Bogota,  so  that  this  is 
the  ordinary  road  for  the  Upper  Magdalena,  the  Cauca,  the  Pa- 
cific, and  Ecuador.  Standing  at  the  Four  Corners,  the  road  east 
goes  to  Bogota ;  west,  you  go  on  the  northwestern  road  to  Hon- 
da and  the  Atlantic,  and  south,  the  road  leads  to  the  western  and 
southern  parts  of  New  Granada.  The  north  road  leads  to  the 
little  ancient  Indian  town  of  Funza,  once  the  capital  of  the  plain 
when  Bogota  was  only  a  watering-place.  It  is  a  pity  that  they 
had  not  pitched  on  the  western  side  of  the  plain,  where  there 
must  be  more  sun  and  less  rain,  so  as  to  save  me  this  long  ride ; 
but  the  copious  cold  streams  rushing  down  to  the  plain  from  the 
eastern  ridge  drew  the  town  to  the  junction  of  the  last  slope 
with  the  plain. 

A  little  farther  east  an  immense  gateway  gave  passage  to  a 
road  up  to  a  building  large  enough  for  a  railroad  depot.  It  was 
only  an  ordinary  hacienda  or  farm-house.  Large  houses  are  a 
weakness  of  the  Orejones,  and  they  delight  especially  in  a  gate 
of  magnificent  proportions. 

Now  my  eye  catches  a  little  white  spot  half  way  up  the  blue 
barrier  of  mountain  before  me.  It  must  be  the  church  of  Mont- 
serrate.  I  now  scan  more  clearly  the  ground  beneath  it,  and 
see  lying  straight  before  me,  and  in  full  view,  the  city  of  Bogota. 
It  had  lain  hid  so  long  on  account  of  its  dingy  color,  so  closely 
resembling  the  hill  behind  it.  Besides  the  dark-yellow  front  of 
the  Cathedral,  which  rises  in  ample  proportions,  fronting  the 
plain,  you  see  little  else  than  tiled  roofs.  A  distant  city  is  al- 
ways a  blotch  upon  the  canvas.  It  has  none  of  the  beauty  of 
a  village,  and  is  but  a  chaos  of  roofs  mixed  hap-hazard  with 
steeples.  How  could  it  be  otherwise  ?  Still,  the  State-house 
at  Boston,  St.  Paul's  in  London,  St.  Peter's  in  Rome,  and  the 
Cathedral  at  Bogota,  all  give  a  character  to  the  respective  cities, 
c.z  if  they  were  the  only  buildings  in  them — they  are,  in  fact, 
the  only  features  they  have. 

The  road  advances  straight  toward  the  city  till  it  meets  the 
lowest  part  of  the  plain,  the  marshes  through  which  the  slug- 


TWO  BATTLE-FIELDS.  135 

gish  Bogota  creeps  toward  its  only  possible  exit  from  the  Saba- 
na  at  the  south.  Here  we  turn  almost  north,  and  seek,  for  miles, 
a  place  to  cross.  We  pass  the  hacienda  of  Quito,  the  owner 
of  which  lost  much  in  my  estimation  by  receiving  full  price  for 
a  horse  too  weak  for  me  to  ride,  and  which,  indeed,  I  could  hard- 
ly drive  before  me,  as  I  ascended  on  foot  the  weary  steeps  from 
La  Mesa  to  the  plain ;  but  he  lets  mules  on  a  wholesale  scale, 
and  if  he  gave  heed  to  reclamations,  he  would  suffer  a  thousand 
impositions.  Besides,  if  it  is  his  portrait  which  I  have  given  a 
few  pages  before,  I  am  amply  revenged. 

The  Dutchmen  had  preceded  us  on  fresh  horses,  taken  at 
Facatativa,  and,  as  the  road  at  last  turned  down  to  the  river, 
the  little  Venezolano,  who  had  not  stopped  to  be  acclimated  at 
Guaduas,  became  too  unwell  to  keep  on ;  and  Martinez,  in  whose 
charge  he  was,  stopped  with  him  at  a  venta  to  await  the  cargas, 
and  I  proceeded  entirely  alone. 

But  let  us  pause  a  moment  at  the  causeway  that  leads  straight 
toward  Bogota  again,  and  is  conducting  us  down  to  Puente 
Grande,  the  bridge  over  the  Bogota.  Near  where  we  stand  the 
fates  of  two  revolutions  have  been  decided.  Behind  us,  as  we 
face  the  city,  is  the  field  of  Santuario,  two  leagues  from  Bogo- 
ta, say  5£  miles.  Here,  on  the  27th  August,  1830,  in  the  lan- 
guage of  Samper,*  "  the  fanatics  of  the  plain  threw  themselves, 
in  the  name  of  the  most  holy  Virgin,"  upon  the  troops  of  Pres- 
ident Joaquin  Mosquera,  routed  them,  and  placed  the  usurper 
Urdaneta  on  a  dictator's  throne.  The  reader  must  be  caution- 
ed that  there  was  another  battle  of  a  Santuario  in  the  province 
of  Antioquia  in  October,  1829. 

Turn  your  face  again  toward  the  bridge  and  Bogota,  and  on 
your  left  is  the  field  of  Culebrera.  Nay,  the  very  ground  under 
our  feet  has  been  drenched  in  human  blood,  for  here  where  we 
stand  died  the  revolution  of  1840,  in  a  vain  attempt  to  pass 
this  causeway  and  bridge  on  the  28th  October.  All  Bogota  had 
been  thrown  into  commotion  by  the  approach  of  insurgents  from 
Socorro.  Priests  and  women  had  aided  in  the  transportation  of 
all  the  military  stores  to  the  Plaza,  and  the  conversion  of  the 
eight  blocks  adjoining  it  into  a  citadel,  when  here,  at  the  very 
threshold  of  the  capital,  "the  Eevolution  of  the  Governors" 
breathed  its  last. 

*  Apuntos  para  la  Historia,  page  148. 


136 


NEW  GRANADA. 


The  Bogota,  as  we  here  pass  it,  is  rather  a  marsh  than  a  riv- 
er. A  small  outlay,  no  doubt,  would  drain  a  large  portion  of 
it.  Beautiful  white  cranes  were  flying  over  its  shores  in  large 
numbers.  They  are  called  garza,  and  are  probably  Ardea  alba. 
One  species  offish  alone  is  caught  in  this  chilly,  sluggish  stream, 
and  this  has  a  sort  of  reptilian  look,  which  belies  its  excellent 
flavor.  They  call  it  capitan.  It  is  almost  Unless,  and  must  be 
slow  in  its  motions.  How  came  it  up  here  ?  When  the  ichthy- 
ology of  the  Andes  shall  have  been  studied,  some  curious  facts 
will  appear. 


INDIANS    GOING    TO    MARKET. 


Nothing  has  touched  my  heart  more  than  to  see  the  poor  peo- 
ple, women  especially,  loaded  with  articles  that  they  carry  to 
market.  Once,  when  I  saw  a  couple  loaded  like  those  before 
us,  a  whole  day's  walk  from  Bogota,  I  could  not  restrain  my 
tears.  Look  at  this  couple  in  raspon  hats.  The  man  wears 
nothing  more,  perhaps,  except  his  pantalones  and  ruana,  or  he 
may  have  a  scanty  camisa  besides.  Except  the  mantellina  un- 
der the  woman's  hat,  and  the  camisa  that  extends  but  a  little 
below  her  waist,  she  wears  only  a  chircate,  a  piece  of  cloth,  like 
a  shawl,  wrapped  around  her,  and  held  in  place  by  a  belt  called 


INDIANS  OF  TIERRA  FRIA.  137 

a  maure.  The  fish  they  carry,  with  each  a  rush  through  its 
gills,  are  not  uniform  enough  in  their  diameter  to  be  the  capitan 
— too  large  at  the  thorax — therefore  I  suspect  they  come  from 
tierra  templada.  Their  guambias  then  probably  contain  yuca 
or  plantains.  Happy  they  if  they  shall  succeed  in  selling  all 
they  have,  including  the  dog,  whose  own  feet  have  brought  him. 

I  passed  these  poor  people  at  Puente  Grande,  and  thought 
myself  entering  the  suburbs  of  Bogota,  especially  when  I  reach- 
ed Fontibon.  This  is  the  head  of  a  district  of  1985  souls,  sep- 
arated from  Bogota  by  farms  and  marshes,  and  by  what  I 
thought  was  rather  a  long  strip  of  road.  This  is  the  turning- 
point  of  many  a  little  ride  from  the  city,  and  a  very  convenient 
place  to  dispose  of  some  loose  change.  Probably  a  billiard-ta- 
ble could  be  found,  or  a  pack  of  cards,  and  possibly  every  other 
appliance  of  gambling  known  at  this  altitude. 

Two  circular  enlargements  of  the  road  here  excited  my  curi- 
osity, but  my  inquiries  were  in  vain.  I  subsequently  learned 
that  they  are  called  las  Yueltas  de  la  Vireina :  they  were  made 
for  the  turning-places  for  the  carriage  of  the  Viceroy's  lady, 
which  was  too  cumbrous  to  turn  in  the  ordinary  width  of  the 
road.  After  this,  a  sudden  contraction  of  the  road,  as  if  a  bridge 
with  a  high  parapet,  announced  the  entrance  of  Bogota,  which 
must  mark  the  conclusion  of  this  chapter. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

POSADA  AT  BOGOTA". 

A  House  at  Bogota. — Servants. — Abnormal  Cookery. — A  Visit  to  the  Kitchen. 
— A  Discovery.  —  Sickness. — Rooms  and  Furniture. — Food  and  Fruits. — A 
Love  Affair. 

THE  reader  surely  can  have  no  wish  to  know  the  precise 
names  of  those  who  for  sixteen  dollars  per  calendar  month  gave 
me  shelter,  food,  and  attendance,  and  all  the  other  thousand  com- 
forts and  annoyances  incident  to  family  life  in  Bogota.  That 
city  has  no  hotel,  and  but  one  boarding-house,  and  as  that  is  an 
English  one,  and  has  few  inmates  that  do  not  speak  English  al- 
most entirely,  the  very  words  "  board"  and  "  boarding-house" 


138  NEW  GRANADA. 

have  scarcely  an  equivalent  in  the  popular  language.  Perhaps, 
like  the  English  word  "  self-government,"  these  too  may  be  yet 
transferred  to  the  language  to  which  the  idea  is  now  foreign. 

The  normal  way  of  living  here  is  to  hire  a  house  or  a  "  habi- 
tation," and  either  eat  at  a  fonda,  have  your  meals  sent  in  to 
you  from  a  fonda,  or  hire  a  cook.  This  last  implies  either  that 
you  also  go  to  market  and  have  your  provisions  stolen  at  home, 
or  send  your  cook  to  market  to  steal  your  money.  The  last  is 
preferable,  if  the  cook  be  not  insatiable ;  but  an  alternation  of 
evils  is  always  better  than  the  long  continuance  of  the  same,  so 
you  should  at  least  make  a  part  of  your  purchases.  It  is  not 
wise  to  turn  off  a  servant  for  peculation,  for  you  may  get  in  his 
place  one  who  has  been  long  out  of  employment,  and  who,  con- 
sequently, has  some  months'  back  stealing  to  do.  It  would  not 
be  imprudent  to  take  a  servant  into  your  service  who  has  just  been 
discharged  for  theft,  for  of  all  thieves  an  unsuspected  one  is  the 
worst.  In  a  word,  any  inquiry  into  the  morals  of  your  servants 
is  simply  ridiculous ;  you  may  rest  assured  that  they  have  none. 

From  all  these  perplexities  I  was  saved  by  a  letter  of  intro- 
duction from  Mr.  Gooding  to  Don  Fulano  de  Tal.  This  I  de- 
livered in  person  to  la  Seiiora  Tomasa,  his  wife,  in  five  minutes 
after  the  close  of  the  last  chapter.  La  Seiiora  Tomasa  is  said 
to  be  the  fattest  woman  in  Bogota,  where  obesity  is  not  common. 
She  is  chiefly  characterized  by  a  head  of  black  hair  that  always 
looks  like  a  rat's  nest,  but  there  is  no  part  of  her  whole  person 
that  is  not  in  keeping  with  it.  The  worst  of  her  is  external ; 
but  a  man  with  a  strong  mind  and  a  strong  stomach  makes  lit- 
tle account  of  externals.  I  followed  Mr.  Grooding's  advice,  and 
became  at  once  her  guest. 

She  showed  me  the  house,  which  was  a  casa  claustrada  of  one 
story,  with  a  second  patio  behind  the  first,  built  only  on  two 
sides,  and  a  third  behind  that,  which  has  only  a  shed  (XVIII.) 
on  one  side.  The  front  is  equal  to  about  three  house-fronts  in 
a  Northern  city.  It  fronts  the  west,  and  the  zaguan  (1)  is  in 
the  northwest  corner.  It  is  paved  with  stones  of  the  size  of  a 
double  fist.  The  door  from  the  zaguan  to  the  patio  is  very 
large,  and  is  opened  only  to  let  in  horses.  It  has  a  little  door 
cut  in  it,  and,  as  you  pass,  you  must  raise  your  foot  and  lower 
your  head.  This  last  I  often  forgot  to  do  till  I  had  received  a 
blow. 


HOUSE  IN  BOGOTA. 


139 


CASA    CLAUSTRADA. 


1.  Zaguan. 
II.  Corredor. 

3.  Sala. 

4.  Bed-room. 

5.  Tienda. 

6.  Dining-room. 

7.  Servants'  Dormitory. 

8.  Guests'  Room. 

9.  Host's  Sleeping-room. 


10  and  11.  Proprietor's  Booms. 
12.  Passage. 
XHI.  Back  Corredor. 

14.  Study. 

15.  Pantry. 

16.  Kitchen. 

17.  Passage. 
XVIII.  Shed  for  Horses. 


The  front  was  occupied  by  the  sala  (3),  with  its  portraits  of 
Mary  and  Joseph,  and  a  nice  image-closet,  that  contained  a  Do- 
lores or  la  Dolorosa ;  that  is,  a  Mary,  with  a  dagger  in  her  heart, 
her  hands  spread  out,  with  a  cloth  lying  across  them,  and  her 
upturned  eyes  red  with  weeping.  Some  stuffed  birds ;  two  sofas, 
of  chintz ;  a  strange  ottoman,  that  looked  like  the  middle  section 
of  a  trough,  with  flaring  sides,  and  the  matting  on  the  floor  com- 
pleted the  furniture.  Carpets  are  not  to  be  expected  in  ordi- 
nary houses  here.  But  I  forget  an  important  and  rather  uncom- 
mon article — a  good  mantel-clock. 

The  adjoining  bed-room  (4)  was  devoted  to  the  riding  estab- 
lishment of  Don  Fulano,  his  gun,  his  blunderbuss,  and  other 
precious  articles.  The  windows  of  the  parlor  and  this  room 
opened  to  the  street.  The  south  side  of  the  patio  was  occupied 
with  a  little  dining-room  (6),  having  no  window,  and  a  little 
room  (7)  with  an  unglazed  window,  where  three  servants  slept. 
The  east  side  had  one  large  room  (8),  with  a  door  and  window, 
which  became  my  quarters.  Next  was  a  passage  (12)  to  the 
second  court,  closed  with  a  leathern  door  by  day  and  stout  wood- 
en ones  at  night.  North  of  this  was  the  family  sleeping-room 
(9),  which  extended  into  the  corner  so  as  to  leave  no  room  for  a 
window.  On  the  north  side  were  two  little  rooms  (10  and  11) 


140  NEW  GRANADA. 

appropriated  to  Don  Pastor,  the  landlord,  who  occasionally  came 
to  town  and  spent  a  night.  All  these  windows  were  furnished 
with  a  reja,  and  with  doors  to  them,  and  most  of  them,  also,  with 
glazed  sash  on  hinges.  Glass  is  almost  a  necessary  to  the  rich 
here,  but  unknown  to  me  in  all  other  places  in  New  Granada. 

The  first  patio  was  paved,  but  had  several  plum-trees,  cher- 
ished objects  with  Don  Fulano,  and  some  pots  of  flowers.  Its 
corredor  (II.)  had  a  matting  on  the  northern  half,  as  this  was 
more  trodden  by  visitors  and  less  used  by  servants  than  the 
rest.  The  second  patio  had  an  unpaved  garden,  with  a  fig-tree, 
a  papaya,  more  plums,  and  a  minute  apple-tree  half  dead  with 
cold.  By  way  of  annuals,  there  were  potatoes  and  other  escu- 
lents. The  west  side  of  this  patio  was  occupied  with  my  little 
study  (14),  an  open  corredor  (XIII. ),  and  a  dirty  pantry  (15). 
A  few  steps  led  down  to  a  still  dirtier  kitchen  (16),  to  a  little 
space  (17)  containing  an  oven,  in  which  there  never  has  been  a 
fire,  and  to  the  door  of  the  third  patio.  This  is  all  paved,  has 
a  shed  (XVIII.)  and  manger  on  the  south  side,  with  a  door 
opening  on  a  back  street  or  vacant  lot. 

This  place,  designed  to  accommodate  more  horses  than  the 
house  could  hold  of  guests,  was  entirely  in  the  occupation  of  a 
dog  of  the  Newfoundland  breed  and  feminine  gender,  whose  off- 
spring were  held  by  the  Senora  at  high  prices,  as  they  were  dif- 
ficult to  raise  at  lower  altitudes.  These  would  do  well  but  for 
the  supposed  nightly  visits  of  the  bats,  who  are  said  to  keep 
them  poor  by  sucking  their  blood.  No  one  doubts  these  vam- 
pire stories,  but  some  confirmation  of  them  would  be  desirable. 

While  I  was  looking  at  these  things,  a  servant-girl  had  placed 
on  the  parlor-table  a  little  cup  of  chocolate,  a  slice  of  cake,  and 
a  saucer  of  sweetmeats.  This  was  my  dinner  that  day,  as  fre- 
quently happens  on  a  journey.  This  over,  I  sallied  out  to  meet 
my  baggage,  which,  fortunately,  was  just  entering  town  at  the 
close  of  twilight.  We  proceeded  to  the  little  Plaza  of  San  Vic- 
torino,  and  had  halted  for  an  instant,  when  I  heard  an  English 
voice  ask,  "  Is  there  an  American  here  ?"  It  was  Mr.  John  A. 
Bennet,  our  excellent  consul,  who  had  learned  that  he  had  a 
countryman  coming  in  the  party.  And  I  have  never  found  him 
less  prompt  or  less  friendly  to  any  stranger,  even  though  he  come, 
as  I  did,  without  any  letters  to  him. 


BOGOTAN  COOKERY.  141 

Thus  I  settled  myself  in  the  family  of  Don  Fulano  de  TaL 
A  little  cot-bed  gave  me  a  warmer  embrace  than  my  cold  couch 
at  El  Botello.  I  awoke  from  it,  and  waited  in  the  morning  to 
see  whether  I  was  to  eat  in  the  house.  While  meditating  on 
this,  Ignacia,  an  Indian  girl  of  17  years,  and  a  little  over  five 
feet  in  stature,  came  into  my  room  and  spread  a  cloth  on  my 
table.  What  else  she  put  on  I  can  not  say,  only  first  there 
was  something  that  they  called  sopa,  because  it  resembled  soup 
in  being  eaten  with  a  spoon.  I  can  offer  no  conjecture  as  to 
the  ingredients.  Another  dish  was  the  ajiaco  that  we  saw  at 
Cuni:  it  contained  potato,  fluid  a  little  thickened  with  something, 
and  traces  of  meat.  Another  dish  contained  what  comparative 
anatomy  would  call  chicken,  but  the  palate  would  conjecture 
might  be  lizard.  But  it  is  colored  yellow.  This  is  one  of  the 
inventions  of  Spanish  cookery.  It  is  often  done  with  arnotto, 
called  achiote  or  bija.  It  is  Bixa  Orellana.  Some  time  after- 
ward I  objected  to  this  addition,  which  only  served  to  prevent 
the  eye  from  judging  of  the  real  condition  of  things.  La  Senora 
name4  it  cover-dirt  (tapa-mugre),  and  banished  it  from  her  kitch- 
en. My  breakfast  ended  in  chocolate. 

My  dinner  seemed  but  a  repetition  of  my  breakfast,  except 
that  it  ended  in  sweetmeats  instead  of  chocolate.  As  to  what 
occupied  the  butter-plate,  I  ventured  to  suggest  that  if  the  but- 
ter were  on  one  plate  by  itself,  and  the  other  ingredients  on  an- 
other, I  could  perhaps  make  a  mixture  more  in  accordance  with 
my  own  palate.  The  good  lady  tried  to  improve  on  my  sug- 
gestion, but  with  indifferent  success.  So  minute  were  the  par- 
ticles, and  so  intimate  their  dissemination  through  the  butyra- 
ceous  gangue,  that  it  seemed  as  easy  for  the  Ethiopian  to  change 
his  skin.  The  result  was,  that  though  Bogota  furnishes  a  doz- 
en kinds  of  good  bread,  I  soon  forgot  the  use  of  butter. 

All  bread  is  made  in  small  loaves  of  16  for  a  dime  (a  cuarto 
each).  None  is  made  in  families,  as  far  as  I  ever  knew,  nor 
have  I  yet  seen  a  bakery.  I  suspect  those  that  make  it  sell  but 
a  dollar's  worth  or  so  per  day.  There  is  little  consumption  for 
the  article,  as  it  is  beyond  the  reach  of  the  poor. 

Only  the  last  session  at  the  table  afforded  unmingled  pleas- 
ure. I  can  not  call  it  a  meal.  It  was  but  a  single  cup  of 
chocolate,  with  a  piece  of  bread  or  cake,  a  saucer  of  dulce — 
sweetmeats — and  a  silver  eroblet  of  cold  water. 


142  NEW  GRANADA. 

After  a  day  or  two  I  asked  permission  to  come  to  the  family- 
table,  which  was  acceded  to  with  much  satisfaction,  but  my  lit- 
tle tea  continued  to  be  in  my  own  room.  The  change  of  table 
gave  my  landlady  a  better  opportunity  to  study  my  tastes, 
which  she  did  with  the  diligence  that  I  afterward  gave  to  those 
of  an  armadillo.  She  spared  no  pains  to  gratify  my  palate.  I 
am  sorry  she  succeeded  no  better ;  but,  while  my  pet  starved 
to  death,  hers  has  survived.  And,  if  variety  would  have  suf- 
ficed, none  could  have  excelled  her  ;  and  my  dishes  were  almost 
as  exclusively  mine  as  when  I  ate  alone.  Never  was  hostess 
more  indefatigable,  nor  guest  more  uncomplaining  in  his  suffer- 
ings. Suffice  it  that  the  experiments  lasted  the  two  months  of 
my  stay. 

I  dare  not  undertake  to  tell  you  of  all  the  strange  things  I 
ate  and  attempted  in  this  time.  One  of  their  dishes  was  blood 
thickened,  seasoned,  etc.  This  I  would  not  eat.  I  based  my 
refusal  on  the  decision  of  the  Council  of  Jerusalem  (Acts,  xv., 
29) ;  but  they  make  nothing  of  that,  for  they  seem  to  think  that 
in  decrees  of  councils,  as  in  acts  of  Legislatures,  the  last  is  bind- 
ing to  the  exclusion  of  all  the  others.  Now,  as  the  Council  of 
Trent  did  not  command,  as  I  am  aware,  to  "  abstain  from  meats 
offered  to  idols;  and  from  blood,  and  from  things  strangled,  and 
from  fornication,"  they  can  not  be  expected  to  be  very  scrupu- 
lous on  such  points. 

One  day  I  wanted  to  see  the  Seiiora,  and  she  was  in  the  kitch- 
en. So  I  went  in.  Now,  good  reader,  I  am  caught.  I  have 
been  dreading  these  fifty  pages  the  necessity  of  describing  a 
kitchen.  Well,  I  submit  to  my  fate.  Of  course,  the  kitchen 
has  no  floor.  A  floor  would  be  useless — nay,  impossible.  As 
well  might  you  carpet  a  foundry.  Second,  it  has  no  chimney. 
A  chimney  would  not  be  impossible — there  are  several  in  Bogota, 
but  of  what  use  are  they  ?  Smoke  consists  of  creosote,  acetic 
acid,  and  carbon.  The  last  is  perfectly  inert,  the  first  a  valu- 
able antiseptic,  and  the  other  an  important  condiment,  and  no 
harm  can  arise  from  an  admixture  of  the  three  as  in  bacon.  A 
portion  of  the  roof  is  raised,  so  as  to  permit  the  egress  of  smoke 
and  steam  without  admitting  rain. 

Most  ordinary  cookery  is  done  in  a  sort  of  forge,  having  a  se- 
ries of  little  fire-places  over  which  ollas  can  be  placed.  These 


THE  KITCHEN.  143 

are  coarse  earthen  pots,  often  unglazed,  and  of  various  shapes 
and  sizes.  The  olleta  of  cast  brass,  in  which  chocolate  is  made, 
resembles  a  quart  pitcher  in  size  and  shape. 

And  now  what  is  doing  here  ?  Petronila  is  busy  at  the  grind- 
ing-stone  bruising  wet  maize  to  dough.  The  Indian  corn  here 
never  enters  a  water-mill,  nor  does  it  enter  largely  into  Gran- 
adan  cookery.  La  Senora  is  seated  on  a  low  stool ;  before  her  is 
ajar — tinajon — as  large  as  the  oil-jars  in  the  Forty  Thieves,  each 
of  which  was  capable  of  concealing  a  man  in  its  capacious  ab- 
domen. It  is  mounted  on  three  stones — tulpas — so  that  a  fire 
can  be  put  under  it  where  it  is  and  when  she  chooses.  Here 
you  see  the  convenience  of  dispensing  with  those  troublesome 
contrivances,  floors  and  chimneys.  On  her  right  hand  is  a  tray 
of  Petronila's  freshly-ground  dough,  and  a  dish  of  peas  (alver- 
jas)  or  chick-peas  (garbanzas — Cicer  Arietinum).  On  her  left  is 
a  tray  containing  part  of  the  mortal  remains  of  a  pig,  cut  in  pieces 
of  about  an  ounce  each,  bone  extra,  and  a  pile  of  the  green  leaves 
of  an  Indian-shot  plant — a  Canna,  called  achira.  It  may  be  Can- 
na  Indica,  and  its  leaves  are  used  here,  like  those  of  other  Maran- 
tate  plants,  for  wrapping  up  things. 

She  takes  half  a  leaf,  puts  in  it  a  spoonful  of  dough,  a  spoon- 
ful of  peas,  and  a  piece  of  pork,  folds  the  whole  up,  and  deposits 
it  in  the  tinajon.  This  she  repeats  till  the  ingredients  are  ex- 
hausted. Water  is  then  put  in.  All  Saturday  night  these  lit- 
tle green  packages  of  miscellany  are  boiling  over  a  slow  fire,  and 
on  Sunday  morning  La  Senora's  tienda  is  thronged  with  pur- 
chasers of  tamales.  Imagine  a  tamal  now  on  your  plate.  You 
open  it  with  fork  or  fingers,  and  you  see  what  irresistibly  strikes 
you  as  an  accidental  juxtaposition,  not  mixture,  of  heterogene- 
ous matters,  like  the  contents  of  a  turkey's  crop  disclosed  by 
the  carving-knive.  It  is  hard  to  overcome  prejudice,  but  I 
have  learned  to  eat  tamales  with  relish,  and  have  even  perpe- 
trated the  pun,  "  No  esta  mal,  it  is  not  bad."  Mo  es  tamal 
would  mean  it  is  not  a  tamal.  J?s  and  esta  both  mean  is,  but 
with  a  curious  difference.  Es  refers  to  a  permanent  or  essen- 
tial condition,  esta  to  a  temporary  or  accidental  one.  Esta  naran- 
ja  es  dulce,  perd  esta  agria  :  this  orange  is  sweet,  but  it  is  sour, 
means  that  it  is  of  the  sweet  species,  but  not  sweet  yet  because 
not  ripe.  Soi  mal  means  I  am  wicked ;  estoy  mal,  I  am  sick. 


144  NEW  GRANADA. 

But  I  have  said  nothing  of  Don  Fulano ;  indeed,  there  is  lit- 
tle to  say.  He  is  the  reverse  of  his  wife,  a  dry  little  Quiteno, 
rather  neat,  and  as  friendly  as  a  man  can  be.  He  was  a  help- 
meet for  La  Senora  in  the  arduous  task  of  pleasing  her  guest. 
Senor  de  Tal  had  but  one  weakness :  after  church,  at  which  he 
was  quite  constant,  he  must  go  to  the  cock-fight  every  Sunday. 
He  never  lost  large  sums,  for  he  could  not  afford  to  bet  high. 
His  only  income  was  derived  from  his  salary  as  shop-keeeper  in 
a  small  dry-goods  store.  A  sprightly  little  boy,  of  very  inof- 
fensive, affectionate  manners,  was  all  their  family. 

For  a  long  time  the  southwest  corner  of  the  house  (No.  5  of 
the  plan  on  page  139)  was  a  mystery  to  me.  I  thought  it 
might  be  another  kitchen,  and,  what  seemed  strange,  there  was 
evidently  an  immense  amount  of  talking  done  there.  One  day 
Senora  Tomasa  called  me  to  follow  her  through  the  crooked 
passage  that  led  to  it,  with  the  air  of  one  who  was  about  to  re- 
veal a  surprising  mystery.  On  my  left  hand,  in  the  passage, 
was  one  of  those  places  like  a  blacksmith's  forge,  where  much 
minor  cookery  is  done ;  on  the  other  were  some  huge  tinajas, 
sheathed  in  hide,  called  also  gacha  or  tinajon,  filled  with  a  nasty- 
looking,  whity-yellow  liquid,  covered  with  the  bubbles  of  an 
active  fermentation.  It  was  chicha,  the  great  bane  of  the  tierra 
fria — an  Indian  drink,  compounded  of  maize,  sirup,  and  water, 
that  carries  the  Granadino  just  as  far  toward  intoxication  as  he 
generally  desires  to  go ;  for  he  differs  from  us  in  that  he  gets 
satiated  before  he  gets  drunk,  and  we  only  when  we  can  swal- 
low no  more;  and  the  difference  is  in  his  nature,  not  in  his 
beverage,  for,  if  he  drinks  aguardiente,  it  is  all  the  same.  Chi- 
cha mascada,  prepared  by  chewing  the  maize,  if  it  exists  except 
in  the  imagination  or  credulity  of  travelers,  must  be  rare  indeed. 
Most  persons  here  believe  in  its  existence,  but  I  know  of  no  one 
that  has  seen  it  prepared. 

Well,  with  a  sudden  turn  of  the  passage  I  found  myself  in  a 
tienda,  behind  a  counter,  and  face  to  face  with  a  goodly  assem- 
bly of  customers.  Whether  she  wished  to  show  me  to  them, 
or  them  to  me,  I  know  not,  but  she  appeared  highly  satisfied, 
and  must  have  appreciated  my  surprise.  It  was  a  tienda  of  the 
lowest  kind,  and  would,  at  the  North,  have  been  a  horrible  nui- 
sance. It  was  a  damp  evening,  and  the  little  space  in  front  of 


FEMALE  DRESS.  145 

the  counter  was  wedged  full  of  people,  one  of  whom  was  tortur- 
ing one  of  those  horrid  little  abortions  of  the  guitar,  a  tiple.  In 
a  brief  space,  procured  at  the  expense  of  a  greater  condensation 
of  the  rest  of  the  crowd,  a  forlorn  couple  were  trying  to  dance. 
Others  were  talking,  and  totumas  of  the  turbid  fluid  were  pass- 
ing from  mouth  to  mouth.  Others  would  force  their  way  up 
to  the  counter,  and  expend  a  cuartillo  in  bread,  chocolate,  lard, 
and  wood,  receiving  as  a  bonus  a  drink  of  chicha  from  the  ever- 
open  tinaja  behind  the  counter.  The  oldest  and  largest  of  the 
servants,  whose  name  it  is  blasphemy  to  utter  lightly,  is  the 
presiding  genius  of  this  condensed  bar-room  for  both  sexes. 

Of  the  cook  I  know  nothing,  except  that,  like  all  the  rest  of 
the  servants,  she  rarely  changes  her  camisa.  One  of  them  one 
day  made  her  appearance  in  a  clean  camisa,  and  I  took  occasion 
to  express  so  much  admiration  that  the  others  felt  constrained  to 
follow  suit. 

Not  to  use  terms  for  dress  before  defining  them,  I  may  as 
well  here  describe  an  ordinary  peasant -dress  throughout;  nor 
is  the  task  a  long  one.  The  camisa  begins  a  few  inches  below 
the  chin,  and  extends  as  far  below  the  waist.  It  has  an  inch 
or  two  of  sleeve,  and  a  sort  of  collar,  cape,  or  ruffle  falling  down 
from  the  upper  edge — arandela.  This  is  often  embroidered  with 
red  or  blue,  but  the  garment,  when  clean,  is  white.  The  ena- 
guas  extends  from  the  waist  to  a  proper  distance  from  the 
ground.  As  this  may  be  the  only  other  garment,  an  accidental 
loss  of  it  might  discompose  even  the  least  reserved  of  the  wear- 
ers of  it ;  so  it  is  divided  into  two  flaps  by  openings  at  the 
sides,  and  each  one  is  secured  to  the  body  by  a  separate  string, 
that  of  the  forward  lobe  being  tied  behind,  and  the  other  in 
front ;  so  the  whole  person,  or  enough  of  it,  is  scientifically  cov- 
ered, but  the  two  garments  do  not  overlap  much.  Add  to  the 
dress  in-doors  a  woolen  shawl — the  mantellina — which,  like  the 
enaguas,  should  be  always  blue  or  black,  and  a  man's  palm-leaf 
hat,  and  you  have  the  peasant  Granadina  in  sufficient  dress  for 
street  or  church.  In  warmer  climates,  a  thinner  shawl  or  large 
handkerchief — panolon — is  substituted  for  the  mantellina. 

A  girl  named  Petronila  formerly  made  her  appearance  every 
morning,  with  her  mucura  and  long  tube,  bringing  water.  I  am 
sorry  to  say  that,  when  a  regiment  stationed  in  Bogota  left  for 

K 


146  NEW  GRANADA. 

the  south,  she  disappeared.  These  bodies  of  troops  are  said  to 
be  followed  by  more  women  than  there  are  men  in  them. 

While  here  I  paid  the  common  matriculation  fee  to  a  resi- 
dence— an  attack  of  the  diarrhoea.  The  exciting  cause  was  a 
brief  dip  in  the  icy  waters  of  the  Fucha,  a  mile  or  so  south  of 
the  city,  where  others  bathe  almost  by  the  hour  with  impunity. 
I  am  sorry  that  I  must  believe  that  the  attack  was  prolonged 
by  the  interference  of  my  medical  advisers  in  my  plan  of  treat- 
ment. 

My  disease  involved  a  variety  of  privations  besides  that  of 
locomotion,  and  impressed  me  with  the  idea  that  my  motherly 
hostess  had  not  the  talent  that  we  often  find  in  kind  ladies  of 
her  age.  She  fed  me  at  first  on  sagu — arrow-root  (hence,  per- 
haps, our  word  sago),  of  which  New  Granada  cultivates  all  it 
uses,  and  no  more.  If  I  found  this  insipid,  the  chicken-broth 
that  succeeded  it  was  not  much  less  so,  for  the  Andine  cooks 
have  an  innate  faculty  of  destroying  the  natural  flavor  of  all 
meats.  Turkeys  are  here  reduced,  by  their  process,  to  a  viand 
as  unpalatable  as  the  rest.  , 

One  other  little  circumstance  occurs  to  me :  from  some  cause, 
I  had  occasion  to  spit  frequently,  and  laid  down  a  paper  on  the 
floor  for  a  spittoon.  La  Senora  sent  in  a  mat  as  a  substitute 
for  the  paper ;  and  the  Indian  girl,  after  putting  it  just  where  I 
wished,  spat  on  the  floor  beside  it,  and  went  out.  Indeed,  I  had 
no  other  reason  for  using  the  mat  than  to  keep  myself  from 
learning  nasty  tricks,  for  there  was  no  way  of  saving  my  floors 
from  my  visitors,  nor  even  from  La  Senora  herself,  although,  for 
a  wonder,  I  never  saw  her  or  any  of  her  family  smoke.  The 
servants,  I  presume,  smoked,  but  it  is  contrary  to  etiquette  for 
a  servant  to  smoke  in  the  presence  of  superiors,  or  for  a  soldier 
to  do  so  on  duty.  I  never  should  have  changed  my  boarding- 
place  but  for  circumstances  that  connected  me  with  a  compan- 
ion for  traveling.  He  was  a  cachaco :  the  word  indicates  such 
young  men  as  wear  coats,  and  might  include  all  English  words 
from  buck  and  dandy  to  gentleman.  The  cachaco  in  question, 
whom  I  will  call  Don  Pepe  (Pepe  means  Jose  Maria),  was  an 
LL.D.,  a  graduate  of  the  Holy  Ghost  College  of  Senor  Lorenzo 
Lleras  (since  Secretary  for  Foreign  Affairs). 

We  commenced  our  life  in  common  with  three  thievish  serv- 


CHANGE  OF  LODGINGS.  147 

ants,  who  professed  to  take  charge  of  some  horses  said  to  be  kept 
in  some  pasture  near  the  city  for  us,  but  we  soon  succeeded  in 
getting  the  two  best  off  our  hands.  As  for  the  other,  Bentura 
(Buenaventura),  nobody  would  have  him,  so  we  kept  him. 

We  took  rooms  in  a  large  casa  baja,  opposite  the  fonda  of 
Dona  Paz.  She  rented  this  house  to  let  to  guests,  and  she  took 
us  in  hopes  that  we  should  frequent  her  table  also.  This  did 
not  suit  Don  Pepe,  who  alleged  a  want  of  neatness  in  her  din- 
ing-room, indicative  of  still  more  in  her  kitchen.  Of  our  rooms 
we  could  not  complain.  Besides  a  small  bed-room,  with  a  cow- 
hide bed  for  Don  Pepe  and  a  cot-bed  for  me,  who  am  too  much 
of  a  Sybarite  to  sleep  well  on  the  soft  side  of  a  dry  hide,  we  had 
a  huge  parlor,  with  three  sofas,  three  tables,  two  chairs,  and  two 
looking-glasses,  all  of  which  might  have  been  sold  for  between 
five  and  ten  dollars  in  Chatham  Square. 

But  now  came  a  vermilion  edict  from  Dona  Paz  that  all  who 
occupied  her  rooms  must  patronize  her  fonda  exclusively.  But 
we  had  found  at  another  fonda  a  table  more  to  my  satisfaction 
than  I  have  elsewhere  found  among  the  Spanish  race.  I  ex- 
plained to  La  Sefiora  Margarita  the  necessity  we  should  be  un- 
der of  leaving  her  table  or  finding  new  rooms.  She  assured  me 
that  she  had  no  rooms  fit  for  us ;  but  she  showed  me  an  inner 
pantry,  or  store-room,  that,  besides  communicating  with  the  pan- 
try, had  a  door  opening  into  the  sala,  and  another  that  opened 
upon  what  once  was  the  corredor  of  a  back  patio.  A  portion  of 
this  corredor  had  been  transformed  into  a  snug  little  bed-room, 
at  the  expense  of  great  ingenuity  and  very  little  money.  I  at 
once  insisted  on  having  the  two  rooms,  and  that  night  our  two 
servants  carried  our  trastos — effects,  including  monturas,  trunks, 
atillos,  and  petacas — on  their  shoulders  to  the  large  room.  The 
pantry  door  was  locked,  the  sala  door  unlocked,  and  both  keys 
delivered  to  me.  The  rooms  were  entirely  transformed ;  for  La 
Senora  Margarita  had  set  about  it  herself,  and  worked,  she  as- 
sured me,  "like  a  demonio." 

Don  Pepe  slept,  as  before,  in  a  stylish  cowhide  bed  in  the 
large  room  with  the  baggage  and  servants  ;  and  as  all  the  light 
came  through  glass  doors  from  my  room,  of  which  they  shut  the 
blinds  every  night,  they  all  slept  as  late  as  they  chose,  undis- 
turbed by  daylight.  I  was  equally  suited  with  my  little  room, 


148  NEW   GRANADA. 

that  just  held  the  indispensable  cot-bed,  bought  expressly  for 
me,  a  table,  and  a  chair,  with  space  on  the  walls  to  hang  ray 
maps.  Here  I  was  at  the  top  of  Fortune's  wheel,  and  I  expect 
nothing  equal  to  it,  or  at  all  to  be  compared  to  it,  in  all  my  ex- 
ile. I  paid  here,  as  before,  sixteen  dollars  per  calendar  month. 

I  did  have  one  cause  of  complaint  on  the  first  night.  My  pil- 
low felt  too  much  like  a  well-stuffed  rag-bag.  La  Senora  would 
have  it  righted  as  soon  as  mentioned ;  so  we  ripped  it  open,  and 
behold !  as  much  cotton,  in  solid  wads,  just  as  it  came  off  the 
seed,  as  could  possibly  be  got  in.  We  picked  loose  a  third  of 
it,  and  filled  the  pillow  nicely,  and  the  lady  probably  jotted  down 
in  her  note-book  that  los  Ingleses  are  very  particular  about  soft 
pillows. 

La  Senora  was  an  Ibagueiia — a  native  of  Ibague — quite  a 
handsome  matron,  perhaps  more  prepossessing  than  any  other 
that  I  have  seen  here ;  nor  were  my  expectations  disappointed, 
for  she  was  a  nice  lady,  excepting,  perhaps,  a  violence  of  temper, 
which  I  never  knew  excited  without  cause,  though  occasionally 
it  went  beyond  bounds.  When  she  raged,  it  was  like  a  sea  or 
like  a  lioness  —  she  never  fretted.  She  kept  a  tienda  and  a 
fonda,  both  of  superior  order,  and  sold  no  chicha,  and  more 
brandy  than  rum.  Her  husband,  who  was  a  major  on  half  pay 
or  pension,  appeared  to  be  a  confidential  boarder,  and  her  best 
friend  rather  than  her  liege  lord.  I  do  not  know  what  his  busi- 
ness was,  but  it  may  have  been  gambling.  They  had  three  fine 
little  daughters,  the  oldest  of  whom  went  to  a  boarding-school 
a  few  blocks  off,  but  occasionally  came  home  of  a  Sunday  morn- 
ing. The  second  went  to  the  same  school  as  a  day  scholar. 
A  strong-willed  little  boy,  who  had  a  great  passion  for  riding  a 
horse  around  the  corredor,  and  a  babe  in  charge  of  a  wet  nurse, 
completed  the  family  record. 

The  house,  which  they  rented  of  a  friar,  was  a  casa  baja  claus- 
trada — a  one-story  house,  with  the  rooms  opening  on  the  patio 
or  court.  It  stood  on  the  corner,  and  was  much  larger  than 
usual.  The  corner  room  opened  on  both  streets,  but  had  noth- 
ing to  do  with  the  house,  although  it  appeared  to  be  a  part  of 
it,  while  the  tienda,  which  appeared  to  belong  to  the  next  house, 
as  seen  externally,  had  its  only  inner  door  opening  into  a  spa- 
cious refectory,  where  at  first  our  meals  were  served  with  those 


THE  NEW  POSADA.  149 

of  chance  comers  who  paid  by  the  meal.  At  my  instance,  we 
removed  to  the  family-table  in  a  separate  dining-room.  The 
husband  had  a  room  that  served  him  for  bed-room  and  office, 
far  removed  from  the  two  rooms  that  served  as  dormitories  for 
the  lady,  the  children,  and  the  nurse.  Another  room  served  for 
several  female  servants,  including  the  shop-tender — cajera — 
while  of  other  rooms  I  knew  no  destination.  A  fellow-boarder, 
a  physician  in  poor  health,  a  relative  of  Margarita,  occupied  still 
another  room  in  the  house.  Back  of  the  house  was  a  large  pa- 
tio, divided  in  two  by  a  high  brick  wall.  One  half  was  paved, 
and  the  other  may  have  once  been  a  garden,  of  which  a  fig-tree 
and  a  papaya  seemed  to  be  the  only  remains.  In  a  shed  at  the 
back  side  was  an  oven,  with  a  peep-hole  made  in  the  side. 

Such  were  the  premises  where  I  found  more  physical  comfort 
than  in  any  other  Granadan  family.  Our  meals  were  two  a 
day,  at  about  9  and  2.  The  latter  nearly  always  included  a 
dish  called  puchero,  made  of  boiled  beef,  potatoes,  and  cabbage, 
not  unlike  a  common  boiled  dish  at  the  North.  It  was  preceded 
by  a  soup,  often  with  vermicelli,  of  which  I  seldom  tasted.  A 
delicious  dish  here  was  the  terminal  bud  of  the  palm,  but  it 
seems  almost  a  crime  to  destroy  a  stately  tree  for  so  insignificant 
a  treat.  It  is  eaten  with  butter,  and  commonly  called  palmiche. 
It  is  a  little  curious  that,  among  all  the  strange  Spanish  dishes 
I  found,  the  olla  podrida  never  made  its  appearance.  As  to  ask 
for  it  would  be  to  commit  myself  to  eating  of  it,  I  waited  till  it 
should  come,  but  it  never  did. 

We  had  a  good  supply  of  fruits,  bought  once  a  week  at  the 
market.  On  Friday,  and  sometimes  Saturday,  the  last  course 
was  fruit  just  from  market.  An  immense  dish  of  strawberries, 
with  sugar  and  milk ;  the  curuba,  before  mentioned ;  a  fruit  tast- 
ing very  much  like  a  cucumber,  and  therefore  called  pepino ;  and 
bananas :  such  were  the  ordinary  table-fruits. 

The  Granadinos  do  not  understand  eggs.  They  make  them 
into  an  omelet,  unpalatable  to  us,  called  tortilla :  they  fry  them, 
but,  in  eating  them,  they  break  a  hole  in  the  centre  of  the  yolk, 
and  put  in  a  good  quantity  of  salt,  and  after  all  it  seems  as  if 
they  may  have  been  fried  in  water.  They  offer  you  also  what 
they  call  warm  eggs — huevos  tibios — which  are  eggs  boiled  in 
the  shell :  if  they  would  offer  you  a  bit  of  nice  butter  at  the 


150  NEW  GRANADA. 

same  time,  you  would  relish  them  all  the  better.  As  for  cus- 
tard, pie,  tart,  and  pudding,  I  believe  these  words  have  no 
equivalent  in  Spanish.  I  have  once  seen  a  thing  that  had  the 
same  anatomical  structure  as  a  pie,  and  bore  the  name  of  pasti- 
lla,  but  it  was  an  outrage  on  the  palate. 

The  pulse  kind — Leguminosge — yielded  us  a  large  and  puz- 
zling variety  of  food.  It  is  all  the  worse  for  us  that  the  En- 
glish word  bean  means  a  different  thing  on  the  two  sides  of  the 
Atlantic.  The  Vicia  Faba — in  French  feve,  in  Spanish  haba 
— is  almost  unknown  with  us,  and  is  called  Windsor-bean, 
broad-bean,  coffee-bean,  and  horse-bean,  but  in  England  is  call- 
ed bean.  The  plant  grows  over  two  and  less  than  four  feet 
high.  The  Phaseolus  vulgaris — in  French  haricot,  in  Spanish 
frijol,  frisol,  and  judia — is  from  a  plant  less  than  two  feet  high 
(bush-bean),  or  more  than  four  feet  high  (kidney-bean,  cranber- 
ry-bean, or  pole-bean),  is  almost  unknown  in  England,  and  there 
called  French-bean,  but,  in  some  families  of  the  Yankee  race,  is 
one  of  the  staples  of  subsistence.  The  garbanza,  chick-pea, 
vetch,  or  fitch — Cicer  Arietinum — is  a  seed  about  the  size  and 
shape  of  a  common  pea,  but  with  a  protuberance  on  it  that 
seems  to  detract  from  its  beauty.  I  do  not  like  the  taste  so 
well  as  that  of  the  pea.  This  also  grows  here,  but  is  less  used 
than  the  garbanza:  it  is  called  alverja — a  name  applied  in 
Spain,  I  believe,  to  the  chick-pea.  To  these  add  the  Ervum 
Lens — lentil,  ervalenta — here  called  lenteja,  and  you  have  the 
synonymy  of  these  useful  articles  of  food. 

The  arracacha  is  the  root  of  numerous  plants  in  different  parts 
of  the  world,  but  all  allied  botanically  to  the  parsnip  and  carrot. 
Those  of  New  Granada  are  said  to  be  Conium  Arracacha,  C.  es- 
culenta,  and  C.  xanthorrhiza.  Some,  or  all  of  these,  are  plants 
of  the  uplands,  like  the  potato.  I  find  them  insipid ;  but,  when 
severely  pressed  with  hunger,  I  have  found  them  delicious  fried : 
I  have  never  eaten  them  in  houses  except  boiled. 

One  esculent  unfortunately  escaped  my  taste.  Some  may 
hare  noticed  that  our  wood  sorel,  Oxalis  violacea,  has  a  scaly 
bulb,  too  small,  however,  to  be  worth  eating.  A  species  here, 
Oxalis  tuberosa,  is  cultivated  for  its  little  conn  or  root,  called 
oca,  which  is  only  about  two  inches  long,  and  therefore  could  not 
be  advantageously  introduced  at  the  North,  although  it  grows 


TROUBLE  IN  THE  FAMILY. 

where  potatoes  flourish.  I  have  not  mentioned  the  common  An- 
tillan  yams,  Dioscorea  alata  and  D.  sativa,  here  called  name ; 
they  are  not  much  cultivated  away  from  the  coast.  I  do  not 
like  them,  except  when  served  up  like  mashed  potato. 

But,  if  any  thing  tires  the  traveler  in  Bogota,  it  will  be  the 
pantry,  the  kitchen,  and  the  dining-room.  It  makes  me  feel 
mean  to  find  my  mind  and  pen  dwelling  so  long  and  so  earn- 
estly on  such  topics.  Perhaps  it  is  an  inevitable  evil  incident 
to  keeping  a  soul  yet  in  the  flesh,  which  flesh. must  be  kept  up, 
in  a  land  of  heterodox  cookery.  I  will  now  cheerfully  close  my 
views  of  domestic  life  here  with  a  single  incident,  showing  how 
we  lost  Bentura. 

He  was  an  unwholesome-looking  chap,  with  a  piebald  skin ; 
the  two  colors  were  not  supposed  to  be  those  of  his  two  parents, 
but  owing  to  a  cutaneous  disease  called  carate.  If  it  be  not  a 
form  of  leprosy  (and  it  is  not  here  so  regarded),  it  seems  to  be  a 
chronic  ulceration  sui  generis.  But  let  that  pass.  As  we  had 
nothing  for  him  to  do,  he  seems  to  have  occasionally  absented 
himself  from  Don  Pepe's  room  of  nights,  and  found  more  con- 
genial quarters  in  one  occupied  by  the  shop-girl,  the  cook,  and 
another  servant  of  the  feminine  gender  and  the  class  called  gua- 
richa.  Here  his  cough  several  nights  reached  the  ears  of  the 
head  of  the  family,  and  one  day  he  recommended  to  Margarita 
that  the  sick  girl  have  a  sleeping-place  where  she  would  not  dis- 
turb him.  The  truth  came  out  that  his  friend  was  the  sales- 
woman, a  valuable  servant,  who  had  been  with  them  for  som& 
years.  My  lady's  fury  knew  no  bounds.  She  insisted  on  Ben- 
tura's  instant  banishment.  Unfortunately,  Don  Pepe  had  gone 
down  to  lower  lands  to  thaw  out,  and  I  was  unwilling  to  inter- 
fere in  the  matter  till  his  return  ;  so  she  consented  that  I  might 
lock  him  fast  into  our  large  room  all  alone  each  night  till  Don 
Pepe  returned.  But  solitude  operates  badly  on  some  tempers, 
and  next  evening,  about  dark,  "  el  carataso"  waxed  surly,  and 
made  some  really  insulting  remarks  to  the  mistress  of  the  house, 
though  he  did  not  presume  to  deny  any  of  the  allegations  against 
him.  She  screamed  to  her  husband,  and  he  ran  to  the  spot  arm- 
ed with  a  spear.  But  I  had  overheard  his  speech,  and  ordered 
the  thief  to  leave  the  house  at  once  and  forever,  which  he  did  be- 
fore the  spear  came  in  sight. 


152  NEW  GRANADA. 


CHAPTER  X. 

BOGOTA. 

Streets  of  Bogota. — Plan  of  the  City. — Plazas. — Public  Buildings. — Library. — 
Museum. —  Observatory. — Preparations  for  Execution. — Cemeteries. — Plaza 
de  los  Martires. — Mode  of  Execution. — Victims  of  Morillo. 

WE  are  glad  to  escape  again  to  the  street,  and  now  let  us  get 
our  first  impressions  of  the  capital. 

The  very  first  impression  that  Bogota  makes  is  on  the  soles 
of  the  feet,  and  that  is  by  no  means  an  agreeable  one.  You  feel 
that  it  is  making  a  beast  of  you  by  compelling  you  to  contend 
with  pack-mules  for  passage  along  the  cobble-stone  pavement. 
There  are  no  brick  sidewalks,  and  few  of  flat  stone.  These  are 
but  two  feet  wide,  and  are  highly  prized  by  the  mules :  a  string 
of  them  never  fail  to  take  possession  of  them  when  they  come 
in  their  way. 

Look  at  the  houses.  None  are  more  than  two  stories ;  most 
are  but  one.  They  are  whitewashed,  but  not  white.  They 
have  a  plenty  of  front,  a  large,  ugly  portal,  and  a  few  small 
grated  windows,  from  which  the  female  inhabitants  seem  to  be 
constantly  looking  out  like  prisoners. 

The  poor  live  on  the  ground  floors  of  the  two-story  houses, 
in  tenements  of  one  room,  with  no  access  to  court  or  yard.  It 
may  seem  incredible,  but  they  have  none  of  the  outbuildings 
or  domestic  conveniences  thought  necessary  elsewhere.  There 
are  no  sewers — no  drainage — and  the  ground  floors  are  gener- 
ally damp ;  hence  the  second  floors  are  occupied  by  the  rich, 
and  so  extremes  meet.  But  here  we  come  to  a  horse  with  his 
head  in  a  door  and  his  heels  out  in  the  middle  of  the  street. 
We  must  make  the  circuit  of  them :  every  passer  has  done  so 
for  half  an  hour  past.  I  never  knew  a  horse,  mule,  or  ass  to 
kick  in  this  country,  though  I  am  assured  that  they  do. 

The  plan  of  the  city  was,  in  the  main,  laid  out  by  nature.  In 
the  chapter  before  the  last  we  were  proceeding  eastward,  and 
had  all  the  vast  plain  at  our  back,  and  our  feet  stood  on  the 


PLAN  OF  BOGOTA. 


153 


threshold  of  the  city,  at  the  very  point  where  the  plain  begins 
to  rise  a  little.  In  the  following  plan,  an  asterisk  on  the  west 
side  marks  the  place  where  the  Honda  road  enters  on  it.  What 
appeared  like  a  bridge,  with  inscriptions  on  either  side,  is,  in 
reality,  no  bridge  at  all,  but  rather  a  bar — as  Temple  Bar  yet  is 
in  London — to  show  the  entrance  to  the  city.  Its  site  is  indi- 
cated by  the  termination  of  the  two  lines  that  represent  the 
road.  Just  north,  on  the  plain,  is  a  detached  square  block,  oc- 
cupied by  the  spacious  buildings  where  once  was  the  Colegio 


^FflC^ 


a.  Cemetery. 

b.  English  Cemetery. 

c.  Convent  of  San  Diego. 

d.  Quinta  de  Bolivar. 

e.  Rio  San  Francisco. 

f.  Aqueducts  for  Water-power. 


h.  Church  of  Egipto. 

f.  Rio  San  Agustin. 

k.  Aqueducts  from  the  Fucha. 

/.  Powder-works  (abandoned). 
m.  Rio  Fucha. 

*  Entrance  of  the  Honda  Road. 


154  NEW  GRANADA. 

of  Dr.  Lleras,  who  has  since  been  Secretary  of  State.  Ad- 
vancing, we  enter  the  Carrera  de  Palace,  the  widest  street  of  the 
city  and  of  New  Granada.  It  was  named  for  a  battle-field  of 
1819.  The  streets  generally  bear  the  names  of  battle-fields  or 
provinces.  The  Carrera  of  Palace*  is  short  and  funnel-shaped, 
and  terminates  in  a  small  square,  the  Plazuela  of  San  Victorino, 
ornamented  by  the  principal  fountain  of  Bogota,  represented  by 
a  small  square  block  on  the  plan.  It  might  have  been  copied 
from  some  Gothic  tomb  in  Spain ;  has,  of  course,  its  inscrip- 
tion, its  low  fence  around  it — pretil — its  numerous  jets  of  wa- 
ter issuing  from  iron  tubes,  for  which  a  crowd  of  girls  in  blue 
mantellinas  and  enaguas  are  contending,  each  striving  to  apply 
her  own  cana  to  the  stream  as  the  mucura  of  her  neighbor  is 
full. 

A  few  paces  beyond  the  fountain  is  a  wall,  seemingly  low  till 
you  look  over,  when  you  see  the  River  San  Francisco  (e)  ten 
feet  below  you.  It  has  come  down  through  a  deep  cleft  of  the 
mountains,  and  flows  southwest  to  this  point,  where  it  turns 
south,  runs  half  a  mile,  and  then  flows  west  again,  out  upon 
the  plain,  in  quest  of  the  Bogota.  This  river  has  made  the 
city,  and  the  principal  ward  or  parish,  Barrio  del  Catedral — 
Cathedral  Ward — is  shut  in  between  the  San  Francisco  and  its 
tributary,  the  San  Agustin  (z),  which  comes  down  from  anoth- 
er gorge,  and  flows  nearly  west,  both  before  and  after  entering 
the  San  Francisco.  An  aqueduct — El  Agua-nueva — is  laid 
from  the  upper  waters  of  the  San  Agustin  nearly  to  the  San 
Francisco,  supplying  various  streets  with  water. 

The  barrios — wards — take  their  names  from  their  parish 
churches.  The  central  ward,  Barrio  del  Catedral,  then,  is  al- 
most shut  into  an  angle  of  the  San  Francisco  by  the  San  Agus- 
tin and  the  aqueduct.  It  contains  seven  parallel  streets,  run- 
ning straight  up  the  hill  from  the  river  to  the  base  of  the  mount- 
ain, where  the  broken  ground  arrests  them.  These  streets  are 
crossed  by  eleven  others,  running  south  from  the  San  Francis- 
co to  the  San  Agustin.  Each  block — calle — of  each  street  has 
a  number,  and,  in  common  language,  also  a  name,  by  itself,  but 
the  names  of  the  streets — carreras — are  not  used,  although 
painted  on  all  the  corners. 

The  third  of  the  streets  that  run  east  (counting  from  the  north) 


STREETS  OF  BOGOTA.  155 

crosses  the  San  Francisco  by  the  San  Victorino  Bridge,  and  en- 
ters the  south  corner  of  the  Plazuela  of  San  Victorino,  a  little 
south  of  the  fountain.  All  the  travel  crosses  the  Plazuela  ob- 
liquely to  the  southeast  from  the  Street  of  Palace  to  this  bridge. 
I  say  all ;  but  all  teams  of  two  or  more  bulls  are  arrested  at 
this  bridge,  to  the  no  small  inconvenience  of  importing  mer- 
chants, all  of  whom  live  in  the  Cathedral  Ward.  We  cross  this 
bridge,  and  we  find  a  rill  of  water  running  down  the  centre  of 
the  street,  which  is  concave,  as  Centre  Street,  New  York,  used 
to  be  in  days  of  yore.  , 

On  the  first  block  on  the  left  hand,  as  you  go  up  east,  was 
once  seen  a  flag-staff  projecting  obliquely  over  a  porton :  here 
floated,  on  special  days,  in  1852,  the  stars  and  stripes;  for  it 
was  then  the  residence  of  our  charge  d'affaires,  Hon.  Yelverton 
King. 

Nearly  opposite,  but  a  little  above,  was  once  the  Convent  of 
San  Juan  de  Dios — Saint  John  of  God — or  the  Hospital  monks. 
The  convent  church  alone  remains  in  the  possession  of  the  hier- 
archy :  the  rest  is  now  national  property,  and  used,  as  it  pro- 
fessedly was  before,  as  a  hospital,  now  at  the  charge  of  the 
province. 

We  go  directly  east  for  five  blocks,  and  let  us  then  turn  to 
the  south  and  pause.  We  are  at  the  business  centre  of  the  city. 
The  street  before  us  and  behind  us  bears  the  familiar  names  of 
Calle  Real  and  Calle  de  Commercio.  We  have  traversed  the 
Calle  de  San  Juan  de  Dios ;  and  the  Calle  de  los  Plateros  ex- 
tends up  to  our  left.  The  view  on  the  following  page  is  from  a 
daguerreotype  by  George  Crowther,  Esq.,  taken  from  the  bal- 
cony of  the  American  consulate,  the  house  on  the  northwest  of 
the  four  corners  here.  In  it  you  face  the  south.  Just  one  block 
before  you,  on  the  right,  is  the  Plaza,  and  that  tall  building  fac- 
ing it  is  the  Cathedral. 

In  front  of  the  whole  block,  of  which  the  Cathedral  is  part, 
is  an  elevated  platform,  the  Altozano.  It  is  broad  and  level, 
overlooking  the  Plaza,  and  descending  to  it  by  stone  steps  run- 
ning the  whole  length.  It  is  the  most  public  place  in  Bogota. 
The  Church  claimed,  of  course,  the  best  building  spot  on  the 
upper  side  of  the  Plaza  for  the  Cathedral.  It  is  not  convenient 
for  a  Catholic  church  to  stand  in  the  centre  of  a  block,  as  a  side 


156 


NEW  GRANADA. 


STREET    AND   CATHEDRAL    IN    BOGOTA. 


door,  Puerta  de  misericordia  —  door  of  mercy  —  needs  to  open 
into  a  side  street  from  the  left-hand  side  of  the  church  as  you 
enter — the  Gospel  side ;  so  the  Cathedral  has  the  north  end  of 
the  west  side  of  the  Plaza.  Next  is  a  small,  old,  rich,  neglected 
church,  once  the  viceroy's  chapel.  The  pulpit  is  overlaid  with 
tortoise-shell  and  silver.  Beyond  is  a  plain  building  used  as 
a  custom-house. 

If  the  government  would  erect  a  building  on  the  south  end 
of  the  block  with  a  fa9ade  to  correspond  to  the  Cathedral,  and 
connect  the  two  fronts  by  a  still  higher  central  part,  they  might 
make  the  whole  side  of  the  square  contribute  to  the  glory  of  a 
capitol  worthy  of  the  great  nation  whose  destinies  are  yet  to  be 
ruled  there.  But  they  have  taken  an  entire  block  on  the  south 
side  to  erect  a  capitol,  with  its  front  on  a  side  hill,  where  no  ar- 
chitectural genius  can  make  it  more  than  the  second  building  in 
the  city.  Its  walls  are  as  yet  only  up  to  the  height  of  the  first 
floor,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that,  ere  another  stone  is  laid,  bet- 
ter counsels  will  prevail,  and  that  it  may  be  employed,  as  the 
north  side  is,  for  a  range  of  stores. 


STREET-SCENE  IN  BOGOTA.  157 

On  this  side  of  the  Cathedral,  and  separated  from  it  by  a 
street  which  we  can  not  see,  is  a  group  of  houses,  which  are 
a  fair  specimen  of  the  better  class  of  genteel  houses  in  Bogota. 
They  hide  the  mercy-door  of  the  Cathedral,  while  over  its  roof  is 
seen  the  top  of  the  cupola  of  San  Carlos.  They  are  stores  be- 
low and  dwellings  above.  The  ground-floor  has  no  windows. 
The  first  and  second  doors  on  the  left  are  tiendas,  while  the 
third,  partly  hidden  by  two  female  figures,  is  the  porton.  En- 
tering it,  you  pass  through  the  zaguan  to  the  patio,  the  stairs, 
and  the  rooms  above.  All  this  is  shown  by  the  door-posts  and 
the  width  of  the  door. 

Above,  all  the  doors  are  windows,  and  all  the  windows  doors. 
The  balconies  rarely  approach  each  other  so  as  to  render  a  tran- 
sit possible  from  one  to  another.  Beneath  the  balconies  is  seen 
a  side-walk  of  brick.  Half  of  the  city  is  furnished  with  them, 
but  none  of  the  others  is  as  wide  as  that  here  seen.  They 
barely  permit  the  passage  of  two  persons. 

I  have  little  to  say  of  the  figures  in  the  street.  In  the  group 
at  the  left,  the  nearest  of  the  three  is  a  type  of  the  old  ladies 
of  Bogota.  She  is  of  respectable  conservative  family,  and  if  she 
did  not  wear  that  same  round-topped  felt  hat  in  the  time  of  the 
viceroys,  she  at  least  wore  one  like  it.  It  became  her  fresh 
young  face  then  better  than  it  does  now,  when  it  proclaims  to 
every  passer-by,  My  mistress  is  not  ashamed  of  being  old.  The 
bull  is  loaded  with  two  guambias  of  potatoes  from  the  paramo 
north  of  Bogota.  That  basket  on  the  woman's  shoulders,  farther 
forward  and  to  the  right,  reminds  me  of  some  that  I  have  seen 
at  Choachi,  but  the  bearer  seems  too  tall  to  be  an  Indian. 

Passing  the  Cathedral  on  our  left,  and  the  Plaza  on  our  right, 
we  have  the  foundations  of  the  capitol,  not  seen  in  the  plate,  and 
on  our  left  the  pile  of  San  Bartolome',  of  which  San  Carlos,  the 
Hall  of  Degrees,  and  the  Libraries  are  parts.  These  we  pass 
now,  as  they  can  not  be  entered  from  this  street.  On  the  next 
block  on  our  right  is  the  Colegio  Militar,  which  we  shall  again 
visit.  In  the  rear  of  this,  and  almost  on  the  street  below,  is 
the  Observatory,  the  oldest  on  the  continent,  nearer  the  equa- 
tor, and  at  a  higher  altitude  than  any  other.  The  building  is 
now  empty,  unfurnished,  and,  to  be  adapted  to  modern  instru- 
ments, would  need  a  revolving  roof. 


158  NEW  GRANADA. 

Farther  on,  we  cross  the  San  Agustin  by  a  little  bridge. 
Then,  on  our  right,  is  the  Convent  of  San  Agustin,  the  tower 
of  which  closes  the  view  of  the  street  in  the  engraving.  The 
open  space  between  it  and  the  river  is  the  Plazuela  de  San 
Agustin.  A  little  farther  on,  on  the  third  block,  and  on  the 
upper  side  of  the  street,  is  the  parish  church  of  Santa  Barbara, 
from  which  the  Barrio  south  of  the  San  Agustin  takes  its 
name. 

Let  us  return  again  to  the  Plaza  and  take  a  view  of  it.  It 
is  paved,  of  course,  with  small  stones.  In  the  centre  is  a  hand- 
some statue  of  Bolivar,  erected  by  his  friend  Pepe  Paris.  It  is 
of  bronze,  executed  in  Italy,  and  in  very  good  taste.  Bolivar 
gave  to  Paris  the  Quinta  de  Bolivar,  marked  (d)  on  the  Plan  of 
Bogota. 

The  lower  and  western  side  of  the  square  is  occupied  by  the 
only  Northern-looking  building  in  Bogota.  It  is  called  Casa  de 
Portales  and  Casa  Consistorial.  It  contains  the  Halls  of  Con- 
gress, the  office  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  and  the  Gen- 
eral Post-office  and  also  that  of  the  city. 

Let  us  go  to  the  southeast  corner  of  the  Plaza  and  turn  up 
east.  On  our  left,  as  I  said,  is  the  Custom-house,  and  on  the 
right  the  old  convent  of  San  Bartolome,  that  has  lately  been  in 
use  as  a  national  college.  In  the  centre  of  this  block  they  have 
contrived  to  insert  the  Church  of  San  Carlos,  called  by  some  the 
centre  of  fanaticism  for  the  nation,  and  the  cradle  of  the  revolu- 
tion of  1851.  The  Hall  of  Degrees  in  this  building  is  not  only 
used  for  the  public  ceremonies  of  the  college,  but  also  for  con- 
certs. It  is  remarkable  for  its  structure :  one  half  the  audi- 
ence faces  the  other,  and  the  platform  is  down  between  the  two 
inclined  planes  occupied  by  the  audience. 

In  this  same  building,  too,  with  the  entrance  on  the  east  side, 
is  the  National  Library,  to  which  the  students  of  the  college 
had  also  access.  The  nucleus  is  a  very  old  library  bound  in 
parchment,  to  which  there  have  been  added  a  few  thousand  vol- 
umes in  French,  English,  German,  and  other  languages.  In 
some  departments  it  is  quite  rich.  I  noticed  over  fifty  volumes 
on  China  alone.  I  would  be  glad  to  say  more  about  it,  but  the 
librarian  was  an  invalid,  and  neglected  his  duties  sadly,  and  it 
was  very  difficult  to  find  it  open. 


LIBKARIES  OF  BOGOTA.  159 

There  is  another  library  here  that  deserves  a  particular  no- 
tice. It  is  one  of  the  richest  collections  of  pamphlets  ever  got 
together  by  the  patient  industry  of  any  one  man  of  limited 
means.  It  is  the  work  of  Colonel  Anselmo  Pineda,  a  man  who 
has  served  his  country  in  a  more  daring,  but  never  in  a  more 
honorable  manner.  After  binding  and  indexing  them  in  the 
most  thorough  manner,  he  has  presented  them  to  the  nation. 
Congress,  in  return,  has  voted  him  a  small  pension  for  life,  mi- 
nus certain  taxes  that  are  always  assessed  on  pensions  and  sal- 
aries paid  by  government.  There  is  no  end  to  the  attacks  and 
defenses  in  Granadan  pamphlets,  handbills,  and  newspapers,  all 
of  which  are  here  bound  in  and  catalogued.  There  is  no  em- 
inent man  in  the  nation  who  is  not  assailed  on  some  page  of 
this  library.  Government  has  unwisely  made  it  too  accessible, 
and  already  has  more  than  one  theft  occurred  of  documents  that 
can  never  be  replaced.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  this  liberality 
will  not  continue. 

Another  room  here  is  a  cabinet  of  minerals  and  woods,  the 
best  in  the  nation.  My  first  visit  was  brief,  and  I  never  was 
able  to  find  it  open  again.  Here,  too,  I  recollect  one  piece  of 
Vandalism,  a  portrait  cut  and  ruined.  Below  is  what  is  called 
the  Museum  proper.  It  contains  birds,  I  believe,  some  insects, 
and  also  trophies,  portraits,  and  relics  of  the  heroes  of  the  War 
of  Independence.  Here  we  see  the  banner  with  which  Pizarro 
led  on  his  handful  of  robbers  to  the  plunder  of  Peru. 

One  room  in  this  vast  pile  I  have  tried  in  vain  to  enter.  It 
is  the  chapel — -capilla — used  by  the  students,  I  believe,  but  an- 
ciently, used  for  the  preparation  of  those  who  are  on  the  eve  of 
execution.  It  has  been  a  beneficent  regulation  of  the  Church 
that  no  man  should  be  executed  who  had  not  passed  the  previ- 
ous night  in  a  capilla.  These  capillas  are  generally  recesses 
that  occupy  two  sides  of  large  churches,  each  of  which  has  an 
altar  of  its  own.  One  of  these  in  Santo  Domingo  is  fenced  in 
with  an  iron  railing,  which  seems  to  render  it  quite  appropriate 
to  such  a  use ;  but  this  little  church  in  San  Bartolome'  opens  on 
no  street  whatever,  but  into  an  inner  court  only,  so  that  escape 
to  the  distant  world  is  hopeless.  Here  some  of  the  purest  pa- 
triots that  ever  lived  spent  their  last  hours  before  they  were 
shot  by  the  direction  of  the  fierce  and  brutal  Morillo. 


160  NEW   GRANADA. 

But  let  us  leave  this  dismal  old  building,  with  its  awful  chap- 
el, ambitious,  ill  managed,  and  now  suspended  school,  its  Hall 
of  Degrees,  libraries,  cabinet,  museum — all  locked,  and  its  fa- 
natical church — always  open.  We  proceed  up  the  hill  one  step 
farther.  Next  above  San  Bartolome,  and  still  on  our  right,  is 
the  Palace,  a  common-looking  house,  but  with  two  or  three  sol- 
diers about  the  door,  which  fronts  that  of  the  libraries,  cabinet, 
museum,  and  Hall  of  Degrees.  Both  open  on  a  street  running 
north  and  south.  The  basement  corner  of  the  palace  near  us 
is  occupied  by  the  palace  porter,  a  man  who  has  long  held  his 
place.  You  will  note,  as  we  go  up  the  hill,  that  the  windows 
of  the  principal  story  come  nearer  and  nearer  to  the  ground,  till 
the  last  is  not  more  than  7  or  8  feet  high.  Remember  that  win- 
dow :  Bolivar  saved  his  life  by  escaping  from  it.  A  few  steps 
farther  up,  look  at  the  left.  Here  you  see  a  large  building,  sep- 
arated from  the  street  by  a  high,  stout  fence.  Is  it  not  the  ug- 
liest building  in  Bogota  ?  Well,  that  is  the  Theatre,  where  shop- 
men, clerks,  and  guarichas  turn  players  on  the  nights  of  Sun- 
days and  the  other  fiestas,  when  people  have  leisure  to  attend 
and  they  to  perform.  I  have  never  been  in,  and  can  not  say 
whether  the  interior  corresponds  to  the  exterior  for  beauty,  but 
I  see  they  care  for  ventilation,  for  there  is  an  opening  in  the  roof 
for  the  steam  to  escape,  as  in  the  roofs  of  kitchens. 

Returning  down  to  the  Plaza,  let  us  keep  on  west.  On  our 
right,  after  passing  the  piazza  of  the  Casa  Consistorial,  we  come 
soon  to  a  door  guarded  with  a  sentinel  or  two.  It  is  the  pro- 
vincial prison,  an  ill-regulated  concern,  not  over  clean ;  but  we 
must  look  into  it  by-and-by.  On  the  left,  and  a  little  lower  down, 
is  a  very  large  house,  devoted  to  the  offices  of  secretaries  of  state. 
The  rooms  are  arranged  around  two  patios,  one  behind  the  other. 
Occasionally  a  sentry  is  seen  here,  out  of  respect,  I  suppose,  to 
the  War-office. 

On  our  right,  on  the  next  block,  is  the  nunnery  of  La  Con- 
ception, that  occupies  two  entire  blocks  of  the  heart  of  the  city. 
The  plan  shows  the  east  end  to  be  built  up,  and  the  lower  end 
left  for  a  garden.  It  is  a  pity  government  had  not  found  means 
of  confiscating  this  fine  property  before  severing  the  union  of 
Church  and  state.  One  thing  they  can  do  yet :  it  is  to  open  the 
street  that  ought  to  separate  the  vast,  useless  property  into  two 


CONVENTS  AND  MINT. 

blocks,  when  the  lower  one  could  not  be  devoted  to  the  pleas- 
ures of  a  few  idle,  frolicking  nuns.  And  this  leads  me  to  speak 
of  another  thing :  the  walking  past  a  nunnery  is  always  worse 
than  elsewhere,  because  they  never  have  a  decent  sidewalk. 

And  here,  one  block  down,  and  opposite  the  garden  of  La  Con- 
cepcion,  is  another  nunnery,  that  of  Santa  Ines.  Nunneries 
seem  not  to  have  their  churches  on  the  corners  of  streets,  and, 
consequently,  to  have  no  "mercy  doors;"  or,  rather,  as  it  is  a 
side  door  that  you  enter,  that  may  be  the  "  mercy  door,"  and  the 
principal  door  may  be  theoretically  one  that  leads  from  the  body 
of  the  convent  into  the  church  opposite  the  principal  altar. 

Let  us  return  to  the  northeast  corner  of  the  Plaza,  at  the  Ca- 
thedral. Looking  up  the  street  past  the  "  mercy  door,"  you  may 
see,  some  distance  up,  a  sentinel  before  the  door  of  the  Mint. 
This  block,  and  those  of  the  Palace  and  Cathedral,  are  darkly 
shaded  in  the  Plan.  The  Mint  is  a  very  creditable  establish- 
ment, under  the  superintendence  of  the  only  survivor  of  the  an- 
cient band  of  scientific  men,  most  of  whom  were  butchered  by 
Morillo.  Fortunately,  Manuel  Restrepo  never  fell  into  his  pow- 
er, and  he  still  lives,  the  geographer  of  Antioquia,  a  historian 
of  his  country,  the  director  of  the  Mint,  and  the  very  model  of 
a  gentleman. 

Now  let  us  turn  north  from  the  American  consulate.  The 
whole  block,  of  which  it  is  the  southeast  corner,  is  the  property 
of  the  convent  of  Santo  Domingo — St.  Dominic — the  richest  in 
New  Granada.  All  the  stores  and  shops  on  the  four  streets  that 
surround  it  are  theirs,  and,  as  if  these  did  not  yield  enough,  the 
part  on  the  street  by  which  we  came  up,  past  the  hospital  of 
San  Juan  de  Dios,  is  built  up  into  regular  houses  of  two  stories, 
with  small  patios.  Here,  too,  the  church  is  in  the  middle  of  the 
block,  but  the  "  mercy  door"  opens  into  the  street  last  named 
by  a  passage  between  two  houses. 

Still  farther  north,  we  have  the  greatest  stores  of  the  capital 
on  either  hand,  and  its  best  walks  beneath  our  feet,  till  we  come 
to  the  bridge  of  San  Francisco.  One  block  lower  down  is  the 
Bridge  of  Apes — Micos — then  down,  after  the  river  turns  south, 
is  that  of  San  Victorino,  that  we  crossed  first.  There  was  once 
a  fourth  and  upper  bridge,  but  that  has  been  carried  away,  and 
as  it  was  not  much  needed,  it  has  never  been  replaced.  Ex- 

L 


162  NEW   GRANADA. 

cept  the  Ape's  Bridge  and  that  at  Honda,  I  know  of  no  bridge 
in  New  Granada  that  is  not  of  the  most  solid  construction.  All 
the  wooden  ones  have  rotted  down  centuries  ago,  and  the  flimsy 
stone  ones,  if  ever  there  were  such,  have  yielded  to  the  force  of 
earthquakes. 

Passing  the  Bridge  of  San  Francisco,  we  have  on  our  left  the 
Convent  of  San  Francisco,  and  opposite  it,  on  the  right,  the 
Plaza  of  San  Francisco,  with  its  fountain.  The  block  in  the 
Plan  on  the  south  side  of  the  square  represents  the  barracks  of 
San  Francisco,  and  the  little  block  in  the  northwest  corner  is 
the  Humilladero,  perhaps  the  smallest  church  in  New  Granada, 
and  the  oldest  not  only  in  Bogota,  but  in  all  the  interior,  dating, 
if  I  recollect  aright,  back  to  1538. 

Now  look  down  the  next  street,  and  you  see  a  bridge  running 
over  the  street  from  the  convent  of  San  Francisco  to  the  oppo- 
site building,  of  which  I  have  not  learned  the  history,  but  as  it 
is  a  place  used  for  female  devotions,  it  has  been  unjustly  called 
a  nunnery.  Perhaps  it  is  malice  to  call  that  bridge  the  Bridge 
of  Sighs,  though,  unless  designed  for  tender  meetings  and  part- 
ings, it  is  difficult  to  say  why  it  was  there.  The  church  in  this 
next  building  is  called  La  Tercera,  or  of  the  Third  Order  of 
St.  Francis,  the  first  order  being  the  monks,  the  second  the  nuns 
of  Santa  Clara,  and  the  third  married  and  unmarried  persons  of 
either  sex  who  are  inclined  to  a  stricter  religious  life  than  lay- 
men generally.  On  our  right,  opposite  La  Tercera,  is  a  large 
and  fashionable  school  of  the  widow  of  ex-President  Santander. 
It  is  almost  as  strict  as  a  convent. 

On  the  next  block  but  one  north,  on  the  left,  is  an  old  con- 
vent (darkly  shaded  in  the  Plan),  taken  away  from  the  Jesuits, 
and  converted  into  a  poor-house — hospicio  —  which  was  in  a 
miserable  condition  when  I  saw  it.  To  fit  it  for  a  foundling 
hospital,  it  was  necessary  to  cut  a  small  door  in  the  wall  next 
the  street.  Open  the  door  wide,  and  you  will  pull  a  chain  and 
ring  a  bell  within.  You  see  a  wheel  30  inches  in  diameter,  with 
an  opening  in  it.  If  a  babe  be  put  in,  a  turn  of  the  wheel  will 
bring  it  into  the  presence  of  a  porteress  within.  She  can  not  see 
out,  and  the  depositor  may  walk  off.  She  will  never  know  her 
child,  nor  her  child  her.  Could  any  thing  be  more  conven- 
ient ?  The  engraving  on  the  opposite  page,  made  probably  from 


BARRIO  DE  LAS  NIEVES. 


163 


description,  gives  the 
wheel  of  twice  the  true 
height,  and  omits  the 
door.  The  artist  has 
likewise  taken  the  lib- 
erty of  dressing  the  un- 
fortunate mother  in  Eu- 
ropean costume. 

Next  you  come  to 
the  parish  church  of 
Las  Nieves —  of  Our 
Lady  of  the  Snows — 
on  your  right,  and  a 
plazuela  on  the  left, 
with  a  fountain.  North 
of  this  the  houses  be- 
come sparse  and  mean, 
till  they  degenerate  in- 
to huts.  Then  comes 
an  open  space  with  a 
muddy  brook  running 
through  it.  Across  the 
brook  is  the  little  Fran- 
ciscan convent  of  San  Diego,  marked  in  the  Plan  with  the  letter 
c.  I  shall  show  you  no  more  convents,  although  there  are 
enough  more,  both  for  monks  and  nuns.  Fortunately,  quite  a 
number  of  them  are  suppressed. 

From  San  Diego  let  us  go  west,  and  we  soon  enter  upon  the 
great  plain  again.  Our  road  is  bordered  with  deep  ditches,  the 
banks  overgrown  with  bushes.  This  road  leads  past  the  ellip- 
tical Cemetery  of  Bogota  (a),  which  we  must  visit  again.  Just 
before  reaching  it  we  come  to  a  neat  cottage,  with  a  bridge  across 
the  ditch.  Behind  the  house  is  a  garden  with  abundant  roses. 
At  the  end  of  the  flowery  path  is  the  gate  of  the  English  Cem- 
etery ((5).  I  copied  and  have  lost  the  beautiful  and  appropriate 
inscriptions  over  the  entrance  in  Latin  and  English.  The 
grounds  are  overgrown  with  grass,  and  no  walks  are  visible. 
In  the  centre  stands  the  grave  of  a  British  minister.  The  mon- 
ument has  been  surrounded  by  an  iron  fence,  but  each  bar  of  it 


THE    FOUNDLING   WHEEL. 


164  NEW   GEANADA. 

has  either  been  broken  off  or  wrenched  out  of  the  stone  and  car- 
ried off.  It  is  said  the  depredators  climbed  over  the  gate 
through  the  narrow  space  under  the  archway. 

Let  us  return  to  the  Plazuela  de  San  Victorino  by  the  straight 
street  running  into  it  from  the  north.  This  street  is  called  the 
Alameda,  not  because  it  is  shaded  with  elms — alamos — but  be- 
cause a  favorite  walk  near  Madrid  was  so  adorned.  A  curious 
bush  grows  along  the  ditches  here.  It  seems  to  have  long,  com- 
pound leaves  like  sumach,  with  small  leaflets,  among  which, 
along  the  petiole,  grow  some  pretty  little  Euphorbiate  flowers. 
It  is  Phyllanthus,  and  the  seeming  petioles  are  branchlets,  and 
the  leaves  are  simple. 

Just  before  you  reach  the  Plazuela  of  San  Victorino,  you  find, 
on  your  right,  what  was  once  a  Capuchin  convent,  but  the  church 
is  now,  since  the  Church  of  San  Victorino  went  to  ruins,  the 
parish  church  of  this  barrio,  and  the  rest  of  the  building  is  put 
to  a  better  use  still.  It  is  the  Colegio  de  la  Merced — the  Pub- 
lic High  School  for  girls  of  the  province  of  Bogota. 

But  now  let  us  proceed  down  the  river,  past  the  Plaza  and 
bridge,  and  we  find  an  open  spot  on  our  right.  It  is  the  Plaza 
de  los  Martires — Square  of  the  Martyrs.  Formerly  it  was  the 
Huerta  de  Jaimes — James's  Garden.  This  Jaimes  was  prob- 
ably an  early  settler  of  Bogota,  though  his  extraction  may  have 
been  English.  The  irregular  string  of  black  spots  on  the  Plan 
represent  a  line  of  mean  cottages,  that  look  as  if  occupied  by 
squatters  on  the  largest  square  in  Bogota.  The  western  wall 
of  the  square  is  a  high  garden  fence,  built,  as  usual,  of  rammed 
earth — tapias.  The  northern  end  seems  to  have  been  much 
acted  on  by  the  weather  or  some  other  cause.  A  few  feet  from 
this  wall  a  bench  is  sometimes  placed,  and  a  man  is  seated  on 
it.  A  file  of  soldiers  is  drawn  up  before  him ;  a  priest  steps 
away  from  him  ;  the  command  fuego ! — fire — is  given,  and  the 
poor  mangled  victim  falls  in  the  agonies  of  death. 

The  more  humane,  but  more  odious  system  of  the  garrote — 
strangling  with  a  collar  of  iron — has  been  long  since  decreed  by 
law,  but  the  necessary  mechanism  has  never  been  procured.  It 
is,  perhaps,  the  least  objectionable  mode  of  executing  the  last 
dreadful  penalty  of  the  law.  The  place  where  we  stand  is  call- 
ed patibulo,  and  the  seat  itself  banquillo 


PLAZA  DE  LOS  MARTIRES.  165 

Here  suffered  Jose  Caldas,  Jose  Lozano,  Jose  Maria  Cabal, ,; 
J.  G.  Gutierrez  (Moreno),  Manuel  Ramon  Torices,  Antonio  Ma- 
ria Palacio  (Fajar),  Count  Casa-Valencia,  Miguel  Pombo,  Fran-  \ 
cisco  Ulloa,  and  other  eminent  men,  all  martyrs  to  liberty — all 
worse  than  assassinated  by  that  butcher,  Morillo,  for  many,  if 
not  all  of  them,  were  shot  in  the  back !     Pardon,  reader,  this 
long  list,  for  the  monument  to  their  memory  and  to  his  undying 
infamy  in  the  Plaza  de  los  Martires  has  not  yet  been  erected. 

It  has  been  proposed  to  select  another  place  for  executions, 
and  to  retain  the  patriotic  recollections  of  this  unsullied  in  fu- 
ture ;  but  executions  are  so  rare  here  that  they  never  seem  to 
Anticipate  another. 

Here  ends  our  lesson  on  the  geography  of  Bogota. 


CHAPTER  XL 

FOREIGNEKS   IN   BOGOTA. 

Legations  in  Bogota.— Our  System. — Mr.  King. — Mr.  Green. — Mr.  Bennet. — 
British  and  French  Legations. — Venezuelan. — Legate  of  the  Pope. — Spanish 
Obstinacy. — Granadan  Courtesy. — Naturalization. 

IT  is  but  just,  on  entering  a  foreign  city,  to  salute  first  the 
representatives  of  our  national  authority.  An  American  can 
scarcely  be  said  to  have  come  in  contact  with  his  own  national 
government  till  he  meets  its  representatives  abroad ;  and  here, 
so  much  of  his  comfort  and  respectability  depend  on  their  char- 
acter, that  the  traveler  can  not  but  feel  acutely  alive  to  the  man- 
ner in  which  their  trusts  are  discharged ;  and,  while  it  is  the 
second  duty  of  the  writer  to  be  grateful,  his  first  is  to  be  im- 
partial. 

Fortunately,  I  have  nothing  to  do  with  any  of  the  cases  in 
which  it  has  been  said  that  blackguards  and  bullies  have  been 
sent  abroad;  for  with,  perhaps,  the  exception  of  President 
Pierce's  commercial  agent  at  St.  Thomas,  I  have  never  met  one 
that  did  not  seem  anxious  to  do  all  his  duty,  and  as  faithfully 
as  possible.  But  it  may  be  necessary,  before  testifying  what  I 
have  seen,  to  make  a  few  remarks  on  the  American  system  of 
appointment  of  ministers. 


166  NEW  GRANADA. 

Unless  we  can  reform  our  system  of  removing  and  appointing 
officers,  it  is  highly  desirable  that  we  abolish  all  embassies  to 
the  courts  of  civilized  nations,  and  leave  them  to  deal  with  us 
as  they  do  with  Morocco,  Muscat,  Burmah,  and  other  barbari- 
ans, at  our  own  capital.  Under  the  present  system,  we  must 
always  have  the  poorest  minister  at  every  court.  We  must  pay 
him  for  leaving  his  business  at  home,  if  he  has  any,  with  the 
probability  that  he  will  have  to  return  home  in  four  years  or 
less,  and  generally  with  the  intention  of  coming  much  sooner. 
You  can  not  expect  him  to  understand  the  language  of  the  coun- 
try where  he  is,  and  still  less  the  spirit  of  the  government  and 
the  character  of  the  men  with  whom  he  has  to  do.  With  other 
nations  diplomacy  is  a  profession,  and  no  man  expects  to  be  min- 
ister who  has  not  served  a  due  apprenticeship  as  attache. " 

The  English  and  French  ministers  at  Bogota  were  both  mar- 
ried to  South  American  ladies.  Both  are  said  to  have  used  their 
posts  for  base  purposes — one  as  a  smuggler,  and  the  other  as  a 
holder  of  a  share  in  an  enormous  usurious  claim  that  he  urged 
to  an  unjust  settlement.  The  English  government  had  commit- 
ted the  farther  and  inexcusable  error  of  appointing  a  Catholic  to 
represent  them  at  a  Catholic  court.  This  ought  never  to  be, 
for  in  half  the  cases  where  the  traveler  should  need  protection, 
the  minister  might  deem  it  a  sin  to  act.  I  know  of  no  valid 
objection  to  a  Catholic  embassador  to  Sweden  or  Prussia,  or  a 
Mohammedan  sent  to  Rome  or  Naples,  but  to  send  a  Moham- 
medan to  Constantinople,  or  a  Catholic  to  Spain,  would  be 
worse  than  to  leave  the  post  vacant. 

It  is  a  little  curious  that  all  our  ministers  to  Bogota  have  been 
natives  of  the  Southern  States.  To  this  there  can  be  no  objec- 
tion, as  New  Granada  has  abolished  slavery,  and  an  abolitionist 
would  never  need  protection  on  account  of  his  opinions.  Mr. 
Yelverton  P.  King  was  a  fine  specimen  of  the  Georgia  gentle- 
man, having  with  him  his  wife,  and  a  son  as  secretary  of  lega- 
tion. His  hospitable  board  was  spread  for  every  respectable 
countryman,  and  the  weary  traveler  would  forget  for  a  time  that 
he  was  a  stranger  in  a  strange  land ;  and  to  the  Christian,  who 
felt  that  he  had  none  elsewhere  to  sympathize  with  him,  the  fam- 
ily of  Mr.  King  was  a  treat  not  soon  to  be  forgotten.  As  a  min- 
ister, however,  Mr.  King  was  of  necessity  incompetent,  from  in- 


AMERICAN  DIPLOMATISTS.  167 

experience,  ignorance  of  the  Spanish  language  and  of  Granadan 
character,  and  lie  was  too  far  advanced  in  life  to  begin. 

His  successor  was  an  entirely  different  man.  Mr.  King  came 
to  enjoy  the  novelty  of  an  Andine  life,  Mr.  James  S.  Green  to 
indemnify  himself  for  the  losses  that  his  practice  had  suffered 
from  his  devotion  to  politics.  His  plans  were  well  laid  for  this. 
Leaving  his  family  in  Missouri,  he  came  and  took  board  in  Bo- 
gota. Hospitality  was  no  part  of  his  plan,  and,  indeed,  it  would 
defeat  it,  and  accordingly  not  even  the  22d  of  February  was  al- 
lowed to  make  an  exception.  But  as  a  minister,  Mr.  Green  was 
at  once  able  and  faithful,  and  had  he  continued  a  few  years  at 
his  post,  there  would  be  every  prospect  that  he  would  become 
eminent  in  his  profession ;  but  he  did  not  stay  long  enough  to 
speak  the  language  even  moderately,  and  before  he  could  begin  to 
act  independently  of  the  advice  of  his  countrymen,  he  returned. 

But  how  do  our  affairs  get  on  here  amid  all  these  changes  ? 
The  answer  is  clear.  The  consulate  of  Bogota  does  not  pay  its 
charges.  No  partisan  could  be  rewarded  with  it ;  it  is  neither 
a  loaf  nor  a  fish ;  so  it  is  left  in  the  hands  of  Mr.  John  A.  Ben- 
net,  who  came  here  as  a  photographer,  and,  by  virtue  of  Yankee 
versatility,  has  become  a  merchant  of  established  character  and 
of  much  influence  with  the  Bogotanos.  I  risk  little  in  conjec- 
turing that  no  step  has  been  taken  by  our  ministers  lately  with- 
out his  concurrence,  and,  as  he  is  a  safe  adviser,  and  interested 
in  the  continuance  of  a  good  understanding  between  the  two 
countries,  all  is  likely  to  go  well  enough,  whether  the  legation  is 
vacant  or  filled.  % 

But  is  there  no  remedy  for  this  state  of  things  ?  I  see  none 
so  long  as  our  foreign  missions  are  or  can  be  used  as  rewards 
for  the  friends  of  the  President.  I  know  of  but  one  branch  of 
national  service  that  seems  at  all  well  managed,  and  that  is  the 
army.  Would  it  not  be  well  to  detach  lieutenants  of  engineers 
and  artillery  for  secretaries  of  legation,  and  appoint  to  the  more 
important  embassies  the  best  officers  of  the  army  ?  We  need 
not  fear  a  worse  system  than  we  now  have,  and,  until  some  bet- 
ter system  is  adopted,  nothing  save  a  wholesome  fear  of  our  can- 
non can  keep  our  embassadors  from  being  the  laughing-stock  of 
veterans  that  have  spent  their  days  in  this  branch  of  their  coun- 
try's service. 


168  NEW  GRANADA. 

The  legation  of  Venezuela  happens  now  to  be  very  well  filled 
here,  and  the  minister  is,  I  understand,  contracting  a  matrimo- 
nial alliance  while  negotiating  on  other  matters  that  arise.  The 
Pope  had  also  a  legate  here  at  that  time — a  live  cardinal,  walking 
our  streets  in  purple  robes.  But  it  appears  by  the  Gaceta  Oficial 
of  7th  October,  1853,  that  Monsenor  Lorenzo  Barili  has  ceased 
from  his  functions.  He  officially  protested  against  the  law  au- 
thorizing marriages  without  the  consent  of  the  clergy.  The 
government  could  not  recognize  his  heavenly  functions  after  the 
30th  August,  nor  his  right  to  meddle  with  their  local  legislation. 
Government  was  ready  to  communicate  with  the  representative 
of  the  sovereign  of  the  States  of  the  Church  on  any  interna- 
tional matters  that  he  might  propose.  Monsenor  disdains  ex- 
ercising merely  earthly  functions.  Senor  LleVas  desires  to  know 
at  what  time  he  will  resign  the  immunities  of  an  embassador,  to 
which  the  cardinal  distinctly  replies  that  from  that  day  forth  he 
resigns  them  all.  He  has  become  an  attache  to  the  French  le- 
gation. 

Spain  has  no  representative  in  New  Granada.  It  does  not 
comport  with  the  dignity  of  that  proud  weak  power  to  acknowl- 
edge the  independence  of  New  Granada,  and,  in  consequence, 
there  is  a  practical  non-intercourse  between  them.  Had  Britain 
been  thus  unwise  toward  her  rebel  colonies,  what  a  valuable 
commerce  must  she  have  forgone  by  keeping  her  best  market 
closed  against  her !  Very  few  natives  of  Spain  (Chapetones) 
are  now  to  be  found  in  all  New  Granada.  Indeed,  they  have  al- 
most forgotten  the  very  word  Chapeton,  and  its  counterpart  Cri- 
ollo,  which  used  to  designate  natives  of  the  country.  Besides 
the  citizens  of  adjoining  republics,  the  most  numerous  foreigners 
in  this  country  are  English,  French,  North  Americans,  Dutch, 
and  Germans.  Of  our  countrymen  there  are  some  half  a  dozen 
here  generally,  and  all  of  them  respectable  citizens.  The  En- 
glish are  more  numerous,  including  some  in  the  humbler  walks 
of  life. 

A  few  of  the  foreigners  have  become  naturalized  citizens  of 
the  country ;  but,  though  naturalization  is  liberally  encouraged, 
it  is  hardly  an  advisable  step.  To  the  great  scandal  of  his  Ho- 
liness, liberty  of  worship  was  long  since  conceded  to  the  immi- 
grant. His  domestic  effects  and  tools  pass  duty  free.  He  is 


NATURALIZATION.  169 

allowed  a  plot  of  land  for  himself,  and  one  for  each  member  of 
his  family,  to  be  selected  from  any  public  lands — tierras  bal- 
dias — and  I  have  even  known  government  defend  a  long  suit  of 
ejectment  against  a  naturalized  citizen  who  claimed  some  land 
with  cinchona  on  it. 

But  the  protection  to  the  alien  is  such  as  to  make  him  slow 
to  covet  the  privileges  of  naturalization.  He  is  now  equally 
protected  in  his  worship,  and  exempted  farther  from  forced  loans 
— the  bane  of  a  country  liable  to  revolutions.  He  is  sometimes 
permitted  to  hold  office,  but  can  not  be  compelled,  while  to  the 
citizen  there  is  no  liability  more  to  be  dreaded ;  for  most  minor 
offices  have  neither  salary  nor  fees  to  reward  them,  while  there 
is  no  escaping  them  but  by  a  certificate  of  ill  health,  or  by  re- 
signing, and  getting  the  resignation  accepted. 

And  the  district  officer  is  obliged  to  hold  his  office  in  the  place 
designated  as  cabeza — head — of  the  district,  and  to  be  at  it 
daily,  often  to  the  ruin  of  his  private  affairs.  I  have  seen  a 
man,  therefore,  earnestly  beg  of  a  doctor  a  certificate  of  ill 
health  to  escape  being  juez  de  distrito — parish  judge ;  and  this 
responsible  office  has,  in  two  instances  in  my  knowledge,  fallen 
to  the  lot  of  men  who  could  not  read ! 

Farther,  while  the  laws  for  protecting  the  person  are  the  same 
for  aliens  and  citizens,  in  the  execution  of  them  a  crime  against 
an  alien  is  apt  to  be  more  certainly  and  severely  punished  if  the 
representatives  of  his  nation  are  at  all  competent.  So  it  is  a 
privilege,  with  this  liberal  government,  to  be  an  alien. 

But,  be  the  foreigner  citizen  or  alien,  the  courtesy  of  govern- 
ment does  not  stop  where  his  lawful  claims  end.  The  whole  spirit 
of  the  government  has  always  been  liberal  both  to  individuals 
and  governments.  There  is  the  same  difference  between  their 
dealings  and  common  diplomacy  as  between  the  transactions  of 
a  merchant  of  the  first  class  and  the  trader  who  professes  to  ask 
all  that  he  can  get.  The  Granadan  government  contemns  the 
idea  of  overreaching  or  outwitting  the  party  it  deals  with,  or 
driving  the  closest  possible  bargain.  The  history  of  its  deal- 
ings with  the  Panama  Railroad  Company  is  full  of  instances  of 
this ;  and  my  own  testimony  is,  that  the  foreigner  is  treated  as 
a  guest  rather  than  a  stranger  by  all  classes  of  officers,  from  tide- 
waiters  to  the  President. 


170  NEW  GRANADA. 


CHAPTER  XH. 

THE  BOGOTANOS. 

Houses. — Smoking. — Dinner  at  the  Palace. — Coreographic  Commission. — Low- 
er Orders. — Market  and  Marketing. — Lesson  in  Spanish. 

I  CALLED  on  the  day  after  my  arrival  at  the  house  of  a  mer- 
chant there  with  a  friend.  We  entered  the  zaguan  of  a  casa 
baja,  and  advanced  to  the  inner  door,  on  which  lie  struck  one  or 
two  blows  with  the  palm  of  his  hand.  A  brief  dialogue  ensued 
with  a  servant  who  came  to  a  door  on  the  other  side  of  the  pa- 
tio. It  was"Quien?"  "Yo."  "Adelante"— "Who?"  "I." 
"Forward."  We  pushed  open  the  coarse,  heavy  square  door. 
It  resisted  our  push  because  of  a  stone  hung  to  a  peg  over  tho 
door  by  a  leather  thong.  The  stone  rises  as  the  door  opens, 
and  its  weight  shuts  the  door  as  we  release  it.  "  Que  entran 
por  dentro"  is  the  invitation  to  walk  in.  The  sala  is  high  and 
spacious,  the  floor  is  matted,  and  two  or  three  cheap  sofas  ex- 
tend along  the  sides  of  the  room.  Instinctively  you  look 
around  for  books  or  papers,  but  you  see  neither.  The  win- 
dows are  high,  and  are  furnished  with  glazed  sashes,  that  open 
inward  with  hinges.  The  walls,  of  unburnt  brick — adobe — or 
of  tapias,  are  two  feet  through.  In  the  thickness  of  the  wall  is 
a  step  as  high  as  a  chair,  by  means  of  which  you  can  mount 
and  seat  yourself  in  the  jamb  of  the  window.  Two  persons 
thus  seated  and  two  more  standing  make  a  snug  party.  All 
windows  are  protected  with  a  reja  or  grate,  and  no  reliance  is 
placed  on  the  sash  for  protection. 

The  lady  of  the  house  came  in,  and  we  learned  that  the  gen- 
tleman we  wished  to  see  was  not  in  town.  She  ordered  a  ser- 
vant to  bring  fire — candela.  It  was  a  brand  from  the  kitchen, 
or  else  a  coal  in  a  massive  silver  spoon,  and  with  it  she  handed 
round  cigars.  I  declined,  saying  that  I  do  not  know  how  to 
smoke — No  se  fumar. 

She  and  my  friend  went  to  smoking.  She  was  of  about  the 
middle  age,  rather  coarsely  dressed,  as  I  should  say,  and  seem- 
ed uninteresting,  rather  from  the  want  of  intelligence  than  from 


LADIES   OF  BOGOTA.  171 

the  lack  of  the  elements  of  physical  beauty.  Her  Hack-eyed 
daughter,  whom  I  afterward  saw  rather  by  accident,  as  she  was 
engaged  with  other  company  when  I  called,  was  scarce  able  to 
converse  about  things,  and  I  cared  little  to  converse  about  per- 
sons,  so  that,  in  spite  of  personal  attractions,  I  tired  of  her  as  I 
would  of  a  moving,  speaking  image. 

But  how  can  we  expect  conversational  powers  without  read- 
ing ?  The  young  lady  is,  in  fact,  almost  a  prisoner.  Her  sole 
enjoyment  and  employment  seems  to  be  to  seat  herself  in  the 
window,  and  exchange  salutations  with  those  who  pass.  Should 
I  ask  her  to  take  a  walk  with  me,  it  could  be  little  less  than  an 
insult.  She  can  never  go  out  but  with  her  parents  and  broth- 
ers. In  fact,  she  scarce  ever  enters  the  street  except  to  go  to 
church.  Her  school  was  a  prison  to  her,  her  house  is  a  prison, 
and  what  does  she  lose  if  she  betake  herself  to  a  nunnery,  as 
a  prison  from  which  she  shall  go  no  more  out  ?  In  fact,  the 
nunnery  receives  no  prisoners  without  a  respectable  dowry,  and 
perhaps  it  secures  her  as  much  happiness  as  she  might  find  in 
the  married  state. 

I  did  not  see  the  young  lady  smoke,  but  I  presume  she  does. 
Many  assert  that  it  is  not  disreputable  for  ladies  to  smoke ;  but 
it  is  said  that  many  smoke  secretly,  but  not  openly,  so  that  there 
must  be  some  discredit  about  it.  As  for  the  practice  of  smok- 
ing with  the  lighted  end  of  the  cigar  in  the  mouth,  which  pre- 
vails in  the  Tierra  Caliente  among  the  women,  I  have  never 
seen  it  here.  It  probably  is  economical  of  tobacco,  as  none  of 
the  smoke  wastes  its  sweetness  on  the  outer  air  till  it  has  de- 
posited a  part  of  its  narcotic  principle  on  the  mucous  membrane. 
Cigarillos,  made  by  wrapping  tobacco  in  paper,  are  rarely  used ; 
the  ladies  smoke  unmitigated  cigars. 

The  family  may  be  safely  said  to  live  up  to  their  means.  I 
have  thought  that  in  New  York  there  was  a  propensity  to  re- 
trench in  necessaries  and  spend  too  much  in  show.  That  fail- 
ing is  no  less  here.  A  former  writer  said  that  when  Bogota  was 
in  its  glory,  it  was  the  abode  of  much  ostentatious  hospitality ; 
but  that  since  war  and  revolution  have  impoverished  the  nation, 
and  the  increased  liberty  of  negroes  and  Indians  have  tended  to 
the  same  result,  there  has  been  a  retrenchment  rather  in  the 
number  than  the  splendor  of  their  dinners. 


172  NEW  GRANADA. 

The  only  dinner  to  which  I  was  invited  by  the  Bogotanos  to 
whom  I  brought  letters  was  at  the  Palace.  It  was  styled  a  din- 
ner "  en  familia,"  and  the  hour  was  six.  I  went  a  little  before 
the  time.  I  passed  unquestioned  the  sentinel  at  the  porton, 
went  through  the  zaguan  and  corredor  till  I  reached  the  stairs. 
In  the  corredor  of  the  second  story  an  officer  was  in  attendance. 
He  conducted  me  to  one  of  the  parlors.  I  believe  I  have  been 
in  six  or  eight  of  these  rooms  at  different  times.  Most  of  them 
are  carpeted,  and  all  of  them  are  comfortably,  not  splendidly 
furnished.  No  one  of  the  rooms  would  strike  one  as  extraordi- 
nary in  the  house  of  a  gentleman  of  ordinary  wealth.  The  re- 
ceptions are  all  plain,  and  of  due  republican  simplicity.  At 
home  the  President  appears  like  an  ordinary  citizen  ;  but  in  the 
streets,  his  body-guard  of  lancers  distinguish  the  "Ciudadano 
JPresidente"  from  all  other  ciudadanos — citizens. 

Both  General  Lopez  and  his  successor,  General  Obando,  are 
old  soldiers,  who  have  often  risked  their  lives  in  battle,  some- 
times for  their  country  and  sometimes  against  it.  Both  are  dig- 
nified, soldierly  men — Obando,  perhaps,  the  more  so,  while,  as 
a  civil  officer,  I  would  form  the  higher  opinion  of  Lopez.  He 
appeared  interested  in  the  development  of  the  resources  of  the 
country.  La  Senora  de  Lopez  appears  as  well  for  her  age  as 
any  lady  I  have  seen  in  Bogota,  with  one  or  two  unusual  excep- 
tions. La  Senora  de  Obando  seemed  to  me  more  domestic,  per- 
haps more  of  a  Granadino,  but  less  elegant. 

At  the  meal  there  were  in  all  about  a  dozen  guests,  but  there 
was  little  about  it  characteristic  of  the  country.  I  will  mention 
only  one  dish :  the  short,  thick,  and  reptile-looking  fish  of  the 
Bogota.  These  were  wrapped  in  letter-paper  and  baked,  and 
placed  on  the  table  in  their  original  packages.  During  dinner 
the  military  band  played  in  the  patio. 

On  no  family  in  Bogota  did  I  call  with  more  pleasure  than 
that  of  Colonel  Codazzi,  who  lives  three  streets  above  the  Ca- 
thedral. The  colonel  is  Italian,  and  his  lady  a  Venezolana,  but 
the  younger  of  their  numerous  and  intelligent  children  are  Bo- 
gotanos. In  their  parlors  I  saw  them  sewing,  and  at  their  table 
there  was  so  little  of  pretense,  that  when  I  have  happened  in 
after  my  own  dinner  and  before  the  close  of  theirs,  I  have  never 
been  able  to  resist  their  invitations  to  sit  down  with  them. 


COMISION   COREGKAFICA.  173 

Codazzi  is  the  head  of  the  Comision  Coregrafica.  His  work  • 
on  the  geography  of  Venezuela,  prepared  and  published  at  the 
expense  of  that  government,  is  a  model  of  geographical  research. 
At  the  close  of  his  duties  there  he  undertook  a  similar  task  in 
New  Granada,  on  which  he  has  now  been  engaged  some  years. 
He  has  encountered  incredible  hardships,  and  at  the  present  rate 
will  in  a  few  years  have  visited  every  part  of  the  republic.  He 
had  then  just  returned  from  the  provinces  of  Antioquia,  Medel- 
lin,  etc.,  having  previously  visited  those  north  of  the  capital,  not 
including  those  on  the  coast.  He  has  since  passed  through  the 
pestiferous  region  of  Choco,  the  coast  of  Buenaventura,  and  the 
provinces  of  Popayan  and  Pasto,  besides  a  visit  to  the  Isthmus, 
in  which  he  gave  advice  to  the  explorers  for  a  canal  route  which 
it  would  have  been  well  for  them  if  they  had  taken.  The  last 
and  worst  thing  I  ever  knew  of  him  was,  that  he,  as  well  as  Col- 
onel Pineda,  risked  his  precious  life  in  putting  down  the  revolu- 
tion of  Melo. 

Codazzi  is  a  man  of  the  utmost  enthusiasm,  dauntless  cour- 
age, and,  I  believe,  a  true  friend.  He  has  been  accompanied  at 
the  charge  of  government  by  a  number  of  assistants.  The  his- 
tory of  his  tour  at  the  North  was  published  by  one  of  them, 
Manuel  Ancisar.  Another  gentleman,  who  has  accompanied 
him  on  all  his  trips,  is  Jose  Maria  Triana,  a  young  and  perse-  " 
vering  botanist.  It  is  impossible  to  secure  such  men  as  are  de- 
sirable for  such  an  undertaking,  but  government  has  done  its 
best,  and  so  has  the  commission.  They  take  latitudes,  longi- 
tudes, and  altitudes,  and  make  other  observations  as  best  they 
may.  And  thus  they  are  struggling  on,  year  after  year,  with 
horrible  obstacles  from  thickets,  precipices,  and,  on  the  Pacific 
coast,  from  venomous  serpents  and  fevers.  Honor  and  success 
to  them. 

But  let  us  take  a  look  at  the  poorer  classes.  Why  do  so 
many  of  them  live  here  ?  Of  the  30,000  inhabitants  of  Bogota, 
what  a  small  portion  have  the  means  of  comfortable  subsistence ! 
But  why  are  there  more  men  in  New  York  than  ever  can  obtain 
employment  there  ?  It  is  because  vice  is  gregarious,  and  they 
would  rather  suffer  for  food  than  lose  the  excitement  of  the  rab- 
ble. There  are  in  Bogota  many  that  know  what  hunger  and 
scanty  fare  mean.  Among  them  are  a  large  proportion  of  fe- 


174  N£W  GRANADA. 

males,  occupying  a  position  more  like  that  of  the  grisettes  of 
Paris,  only  the  latter  far  excel  the  guarichas  of  Bogota  in  intel- 
ligence, wealth,  comforts,  attractiveness,  and  in  morals. 

The  guarichas  furnish  an  ample  supply  of  wet-nurses  at  a 
very  reasonable  price,  only  that  when  they  have  gained  the  af- 
fections of  their  charge  they  abuse  their  advantage,  as  the  heart- 
less of  that  class  are  apt  to  do.  Their  own  children  are  no  ob- 
stacle, for,  if  they  live,  they  can  put  them  into  the  foundling 
wheel  as  soon  as  a  good  offer  for  their  services  occurs.  Mar- 
garita treated  some  of  her  girls  to  a  little  recreation  once.  They 
went  off  to  the  Fucha  to  swim,  taking  with  them  the  babe  and 
wet-nurse,  and  also  our  two  little  girls,  who  are  not  old  enough 
to  learn  any  evil  in  such  company.  Well,  there  our  ama  de 
pechos  saw  her  own  babe  and  its  father,  and  what  else  happen- 
ed my  little  friends  did  not  tell  me.  Next  day  our  babe  was 
crying,  and  the  mother  calling  out  to  the  nurse,  who  made  no 
answer.  She  cried  worse,  and  La  Senora,  in  a  fury,  ran  to  the 
rescue.  She  found  the  babe  all  alone,  clinging  to  the  valance 
of  the  bed,  and  unable  to  get  down.  The  nurse  had  decamped, 
bag  and  baggage  ! 

I  called  on  my  washerwoman  one  day.  She  lives  in  a  tene- 
ment on  the  ground  floor  of  a  casa  alta.  Cold  as  is  the  weather 
in  Bogota,  the  door  is  open  to  admit  light,  for  she  has  no  glass. 
To  prevent  the  intrusion  of  prying  eyes,  a  screen — mampara — 
is  placed  before  the  door.  It  is  too  high  for  a  five-foot  Indian 
to  look  over,  and  placed  just  so  that  we  can  run  round  it.  The 
little  room  looks  like  a  prison  cell,  only  it  has  no  grated  win- 
dow, nor  loop-hole,  nor  breathing-hole,  except  the  open  door. 
Within  is  an  inner  cell,  smaller  than  the  outer,  with  no  door,  and 
all  its  light  and  air  comes  from  the  outer  door.  A  table,  as  large 
and  as  high  as  an  ottoman,  a  low  stool,  the  seat  of  which  is 
made  of  two  equal  surfaces  descending  to  the  centre  like  a  trough, 
two  or  three  little  earthen  dishes,  the  poyo  or  immovable  seat 
built  around  the  walls,  pieces  of  raw-hide  or  mat  for  beds,  and 
the  mampara,  are  all  her  furniture.  The  wash-tub  ?  It  is  the 
river.  The  ironing  apparatus  ?  Another  woman  does  the  iron- 
ing. 

Where  is  her  door  leading  into  the  patio  ?  She  has  none, 
and  can  have  none.  A  fine  house  would  it  be  if  any  guaricha 


THE  POORER  CLASSES. 

that  chose  to  rent  this  miserable  tenement  could  come  into  the 
patio.  But  what  can  she  do  ?  Where  can  she  go  ?  for  modern 
improvements  are  not  dreamed  of,  and  sewerage  there  is  none. 
She  has  no  rights  outside  these  two  little  holes,  except  in  the 
streets,  vacant  lots,  and  by  the  river  side.  Blame  not,  then,  the 
poor  peasant  women  by  the  river  side :  they  keep  the  laws 
of  decorum  as  far  as  is  in  their  power  ;  and  when  you  are  sick- 
ened at  the  sight  of  filth  in  the  street  in  a  city  314  years  old, 
washed  by  two  rivers,  and  placed  on  a  side  hill  to  make  drain- 
age as  easy  as  possible,  let  it  be  a  motive  to  urge  upon  the  gobi- 
erno  of  the  province  some  such  radical  measures  as  health  and 
decency  demand. 

The  number  of  families  living  in  this  way  exceed,  perhaps,  the 
number  of  well-living  families  in  Bogota.  The  ground  floor  is 
often  regarded  as  not  so  healthy  as  the  first  floor,  so  each  house 
has  but  one  respectable  family  that  has  access  to  the  patios. 
The  front  room  of  these  lairs,  excavated,  so  to  speak,  in  the 
foundations  of  the  best  houses  (the  Vice-president's  among  the 
rest),  are  often  used  as  shops  by  shoemakers,  tailors,  saddlers, 
etc.,  some  of  whose  implements  even  occupy  part  of  the  street, 
to  the  inconvenience  of  every  passer-by.  Here  you  see  a  game- 
cock anchored  to  a  peg  by  a  string  that  has  a  segment  of  cow's 
horn,  of  the  size  of  a  napkin-ring,  forming  a  sort  of  swivel-link 
in  the  middle,  that  the  prisoner  may  not  twist  his  cord  up  into 
knots.  The  bird  is  out  here  at  board :  his  owner  might  not 
wish  such  an  ornament  in  his  own  patio. 

Bogota  has  a  daily  market  in  the  Plaza  of  San  Francisco.  It 
is,  however,  small,  and  resorted  to  mainly  to  supply  accidental 
deficiencies  and  unforeseen  wants.  The  great  market-day  of 
Bogota  is  Friday,  though  the  market  really  opens  on  Thursday 
in  the  principal  plaza.  On  Friday  the  whole  square  is  covered 
with  sellers  and  their  merchandise.  They  invade  the  steps  of 
the  Altozano,  but  the  platform  above  is  left  free.  The  square 
is  paved  with  cobble-stone,  except  two  diagonal  walks  of  flat 
stone,  which  are  so  arranged  in  some  places  as  to  form  troughs 
to  save  the  rain  water  to  moisten  the  thirsty  sole  of  some  passer 
at  night.  One  of  them,  near  the  northwest  corner,  almost  de- 
serves a  place  on  the  map  of  the  city ;  and  there  are  others  in 
the  city  that  I  could  avoid  even  now  by  my  distant  recollections 


176  NEW   GRANADA. 

of  repeated  disasters.  A  person  who  designs  stopping  in  Bo- 
gota should  bring  his  lantern  and  a  good  pair  of  India-rubber 
shoes. 

But  I  was  speaking  of  the  market.  Wednesday,  you  remem- 
ber, is  the  market-day  of  Facatativa.  Many  things  sold  or  un- 
sold there  are  transferred  to  the  Plaza  of  Bogota  on  Thursday. 
Here  there  is  a  stream  of  sirup,  panela,  yellowish  loaf-sugar, 
fruits,  etc.,  flowing  toward  Bogota,  along  the  great  macadamized 
road,  in  bull-carts,  and  on  the  backs  of  men  and  beasts.  Here  an 
unfortunate  descendant  of  the  warlike  Panches,  that  climbed  up 
the  steep  height  on  Tuesday  night,  sat  all  day  on  Wednesday 
in  the  market  of  Facatativa,  is  taking  his  weary  way,  with  his 
unsold  back-load,  twenty-eight  miles  more,  and  to-morrow  he 
hopes  to  sell  his  load  and  start  home. 

At  Cuatro  Esquinas  he  meets  others  directly  up  from  La 
Mesa  by  Barro  Blanco,  chiefly  with  the  products  of  the  cane. 
Why  is  not  rum,  the  bane  of  man,  among  them  ?  Because  no 
man  has  a  right  to  sell  unimported  spirits  in  this  province  that 
have  not  been  distilled  by  Mr.  Wills,  and  all  his  is  brought  from 
Cuni,  and  sold  in  his  little  shop  near  the  Hospital.  And  from 
south  and  north,  along  the  eastern  edge  of  the  plain,  come  other 
bands  of  marketers.  Those  mules  from  the  north,  entering  the 
city  near  the  Convent  of  San  Diego,  are  loaded  with  moyas  of 
salt,  bought  at  the  government  store  in  Cipaquira  at  two  dollars 
per  hundred  weight.  The  beef  for  the  market  is  much  of  it  kill- 
ed in  the  southern  and  meanest  outskirts  of  the  city.  The  ox 
spent  the  first  three  years  of  his  life  a  bullock  on  the  plains  of 
Casanare,  far  to  the  east — three  terrible  years  of  alternate  thirst 
and  rain,  of  famine  and  flies.  All  this  he  survived,  then  the 
perils  of  the  knife,  then  the  journey  through  the  mountains ;  and 
he  has  hardly  got  wonted  to  this  colder  climate,  when,  having 
waxed  fat  with  the  first  peace  and  plenty  he  has  ever  known, 
he  is  cut  off  in  the  midst  of  his  years.  A  good  piece  of  him  will 
constitute  an  important  ingredient  of  Margarita's  puchero  for 
Saturday.  His  head  has  fallen  to  the  share  of  some  guaricha 
or  peasant,  his  skin  is  already  stretched  out  on  the  ground  and 
made  fast  by  pegs,  his  blood  is  cooking  in  twenty  ollas  at  this 
moment,  and  in  six  days  more  every  digestible  particle  of  him 
except  the  gall-bladder  will  have  been  subjected  to  the  action  of 


MARKET  AT  BOGOTA.  177 

the  human  stomach.  How  I  hate  carne  menudo,  as  they  call 
those  parts  of  the  animal  that  are  not  muscle.  I  could  write 
feelingly,  and  give  an  especial  philippic  on  mondongo — tripe — 
black  pudding,  and  the  udder  of  cows,  only  that  it  would  make 
us  all  sick. 

But  no  roads  to  market  are  more  thickly  crowded  than  those 
which  come  down  through  the  mountains  east.  What  multi- 
tudes I  have  met  on  them  at  different  times !  I  meet  them  sin- 
gly and  in  groups,  all  females,  or  with  some  men  in  company, 
leading  or  driving  a  bull  with  a  rope  in  his  nose,  or  themselves 
loaded  with  the  productions  of  their  little  fields  or  of  their  labors. 

And  now,  on  Friday  morning,  let  us  go  out  and  pass  them  in 
review.  I  have  spent  many  patient  and  laborious  hours  with 
them,  and  even  completed  an  enormous  catalogue  of  their  wares, 
which  I  was  intending  to  weave  into  one  of  those  easy  metres 
so  natural  to  Spanish  and  Italian,  but,  fortunately,  perhaps,  for 
the  reader,  I  have  lost  the  list.  Nevertheless,  to  show  you  what 
I  can  do  and  what  you  have  escaped,  I  will  even  give  you  a 
verse  or  two.  I  will  take  a  favorite  metre  that  they  call  Safico- 
adonigo,  well  known  to  Horace,  and  best  illustrated  by  Can- 
ning's "Knife-grinder:" 

"  Needy  knife-grinder,  whither  art  thou  going  ? 
Eough  is  the  road,  thy  wheel  is  out  of  order, 
Cold  blows  the  wind,  thy  hat  it  hath  a  hole  in't, 
So  have  thy  breeches." 

This  metre  taught  me  the  laws  of  Spanish  prosody,  and  the 
accents  will  all  come  right  without  writing,  except  where  orthog- 
raphy always  places  them.  The  pronunciation  will  be  given 
at  the  head  of  the  Glossary  at  the  end  of  the  volume.  I  must 
forewarn  the  beginner  farther,  that  when  one  word  ends  with  a 
vowel  and  the  next  begins  with  one,  the  two  are  counted  as  but 
one  syllable,  as  6-ro|en  pol-vo,  and  car-ne,e-ste-ras.  Now  here 
you  have  it : 

Papas,  tinajas,  peces,  alpargates, 
Sal,  cuentas,  ocas,  cueros,  alfandoque, 
Piscos,  marranos,  oro  en  polvo,  fresas, 

Losa  y  brevas. 

Huevos,  cabuya,  platanos,  zarazas, 
Mucuras,  patos,  pinas,  carne,   esteras, 
Tunas,  naranjas,  azafran,  frijoles, 

Cal  y  tasajo. 

M 


178  NEW  GRANADA. 

There !  with  some  twenty-eight  more  verses  like  these  we 
might  perhaps  have  a  tolerable  enumeration  of  the  articles  most 
ordinarily  sold  in  the  market  of  Bogota,  and  as  a  reading-lesson 
for  the  future  traveler  in  the  Andes  it  would  be  very  serviceable, 
though  he  might  like  a  little  more  of  the  "  dulce"  mixed  in  with 
the  "  utile"  in  its  composition. 

But  we  must  enter  the  market  in  plain  prose.  We  approach 
the  Plaza  from  the  plain  at  the  northwest  corner.  Along  up 
toward  the  Cathedral  extend  collections  of  sugar  and  salt,  the 
moyas  broken  into  various  pieces.  Wooden  scales,  and  stones 
for  weights,  enable  the  seller  to  weigh  the  articles  to  his  own 
satisfaction,  perhaps  to  the  entire  satisfaction  of  the  buyer. 

On  our  left  hand,  as  we  look  toward  Bolivar's  statue,  are 
some  Indian  productions,  made  of  cotton,  wool,  and  the  fibre  of 
a  kind  of  century-plant  yet  to  be  mentioned.  We  advance  to- 
ward the  centre  a  rod  or  two,  and  turn  up  in  front  of  the  centre 
of  the  Cathedral.  On  our  left  are  the  sugar  and  salt  aforesaid, 
on  the  right  esculent  roots  and  other  vegetables ;  hens  in  eel- 
pot  cages,  eggs  tied  two  and  two,  earthenware,  and  fish.  Here 
is  a  collection :  a  turkey  tied  by  one  leg  to  a  peg  driven  into  the 
pavement,  a  pig  similarly  moored,  and  a  babe  almost  naked. 
Advancing,  we  find  fruits  on  both  hands,  till  you  come  near  the 
Altozano,  and  turn  south.  Here  you  fall  in  with  sellers  of  im- 
ported goods,  cloths,  and  calicoes.  There  are  one  or  two  tents 
or  boxes  with  a  roof.  The  occupant  of  one,  seeing  me  busy 
with  my  pencil,  desires  me  to  record  that  he  has  gold  dust  for 
sale,  which  I  have  done  (vide  supra).  Here  are  cylinders  of 
matting  five  inches  wide ;  those  who  sell  it  put  it  down  and 
sew  it.  As  we  approach  the  south  end  we  come  to  the  meat  de- 
partment, and  turn  down  between  meat  and  dry  goods.  Then 
on  our  right  comes  the  green  grocery  again,  till  we  approach  the 
Casa  de  Portales,  where  are  found  cordage  and  native  manufac- 
tures of  wood,  cotton,  wool,  and  other  fibres  that  we  noticed  on 
entering.  The  arrangement  is  not,  however,  systematic,  but  rath- 
er geographical,  or  that  which  is  congenial  to  the  sellers.  Each 
locates  herself  among  her  friends,  and  sells  whatever  she  has 
brought ;  and  here  they  remain,  sitting  or  waiting  all  day.  On 
Saturday  morning  you  find  the  gallinozos  scanning  the  whole 
field,  and  particularly  where  the  meat  was  sold,  leaving  no  sub- 


CHAFFERING.  179 

stance  unexamined.  Lastly  come  the  scavengers,  a  small  squad 
of  the  presidio,  under  the  guard  of  two  soldiers.  They  sweep 
up  the  leaves  that  had  served  for  wrapping-paper  and  all  the 
rest  of  the  refuse,  and  market  is  over. 

I  went  to  market  once  for  string,  and,  as  I  had  had  no  other 
opportunity  of  making  practical  experiments,  I  made  the  most 
of  this.  The  first  time  the  price  asked  was  more  than  I  had 
been  told  to  give.  I  accordingly  went  off  without  making  my 
purchase,  after  having  offered  what  I  had  been  told  was  proper. 
One  of  the  girls  took  the  balls  of  string,  and  followed  me  all 
over  the  market,  where  I  must  have  spent  more  than  half  an  hour. 
It  was  some  time  before  I  discovered  her,  and  she  was  not  aware 
of  my  discovery.  She  seemed  to  wait  for  me  to  apply  to  anoth- 
er for  the  same  article,  but  I  did  not,  and  at  length  left  to  go 
home.  Still  the  poor  indiacita  followed  me  some  rods  beyond 
the  Plaza,  when,  finding  me  really  going,  she  offered  her  balls 
at  the  usual  price,  and  received  her  pay. 

Overcharging  strangers  from  richer  nations  is  a  fault  of  the 
mean  and  wicked  every  where.  It  vexes  the  traveler,  who  now 
submits,  and  now  resists  with  more  benefit  to  his  successors 
than  to  himself ;  but  I  think,  on  the  whole,  there  is  far  less  of 
it  in  New  Granada  than  might  reasonably  be  expected ;  and  if 
the  market-people  could  only  be  made  to  husband  their  gains, 
one  could  not  help  loving  them.  But  the  tiendas  where  chicha 
is  sold  witness  a  great  many  sad  scenes  at  the  close  of  a  mar- 
ket, and  some  of  a  disgusting  character.  Many  reach  home 
without  a  cuartillo  of  all  their  sales.  Poor  things !  they  need 
to  be  taught  economy,  and  to  desire  nobler  and  more  lasting 
gratifications  than  any  they  now  know. 


180  NEW  GRANADA. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

EELIGION   AND  CHURCHES  OF  BOGOTA. 

Doctrines  of  the  Romish  Church.— Miraculous  Birth  of  Christ. — Baptism. — Re- 
lation of  God-parents. — Confirmation. — Communion. — Rosary  and  Crown. — 
Family  Worship. — Vespers. — Neglect  of  Religion. 

MANY  intelligent  persons  are  but  little  acquainted  with  the 
Eomish  religion.  We  propose  to  take  a  view  of  it  as  observers, 
not  as  theologians.  It  shall  be  by  a  candid  statement  of  facts 
without  comments,  which  here  would  be  out  of  place ;  and  if 
the  reader  charge  me  with  irreverence,  my  plea  is  that  I  find  no 
reverence  among  the  faithful  here,  and  the  less  can  therefore  be 
expected  in  me. 

We  wish  to  see  some  of  the  churches  in  the  city  of  the  Holy 
Faith,  as  certain  devotees  still  call  Bogota,  although  the  name 
of  Santafe  seems  to  have  departed  with  the  last  of  the  viceroys 
that  here  ruled  the  New  Kingdom  of  Granada.  It  is  well  first 
to  be  indoctrinated  into  the  holy  faith  itself.  I  shall  treat  it 
briefly,  and  as  a  historian  rather  than  a  polemic. 

The  Romish  Church — or  the  Church,  as  she  styles  herself,  for 
she  admits  the  existence  of  no  other  church — the  holy  Catholic 
Church  professes  not  to  teach,  as  many  of  her  ignorant  votaries 
believe,  a  salvation  by  mere  ceremonies  irrespective  of  any  exer- 
cises of  the  heart ;  and  yet  to  this  we  must  except  the  doctrine  that 
no  unbaptized  person  can  escape  hell ;  while,  save  in  some  rare 
and  dreadful  case,  no  baptized  person  can  go  there.  Baptism,  the 
first  and  only  absolutely  essential  sacrament  of  the  seven,  may  be 
administered  by  a  layman  or  a  woman.  It  is  accordingly  often 
done,  if  the  babe  be  weak,  at  once,  by  some  intelligent  person,  but 
not  with  all  the  ceremonies.  This  is  called  "Echar  agua" — to 
throw  water.  If  the  child  lives,  the  priest  performs  all  the  other 
ceremonies  of  the  sacrament  with  oil,  salt,  and  spittle,  with  bell, 
book,  and  candle.  The  priest  must  have,  when  he  applies  the 
water,  a  mental  or  habitual  intention  to  baptize,  or  the  ceremony 
is  void,  and  no  future  precautions,  while  this  defect  is  not  sus- 
pected and  remedied,  can  save  from  hell.  Priests  have  been 


BAPTISM.— CONFIRMATION. 

guilty  of  this  awful  crime  from  sheer  deviltry.  But  if  the  priest 
be  drunk  or  stupid,  and  have  no  intention  at  all,  it  is  habitual 
intention,  and  is  valid.  A  godfather  and  godmother — padrino 
and  padrina  or  madrina — are  required,  to  whom  the  babe  is  ahi- 
jado  or  ahijada,  according  to  the  sex.  This  relation — padrin- 
azgo — is  a  bar  to  matrimony,  and  a  priest  may  have  an  ahijada 
in  his  house  with  as  much  propriety  as  a  niece.  The  god- 
parents consider  themselves  bound  in  a  sort  of  relationship  to 
each  other  and  to  the  parents,  and  for  all  the  rest  of  life  they 
call  each  other  compadre  and  comadre.  But  when  you  find  per- 
sons using  these  terms,  you  may  not  infer  that  there  has  been 
any  baptism  in  the  case,  for  these  terms  of  endearment  are  often 
assumed  by  agreement  between  a  gentleman  and  a  lady. 

God  has  so  ordered  that,  with  a  proper  education,  the  children 
of  Christians  become  Christians  with  a  good  degree  of  regular- 
ity. Now  the  profession  that  the  child  makes  at  birth  through 
the  god-parents,  it  is  proper  that  he  should  make  by  himself 
when  he  comes  to  years  of  discretion.  And  who  can  judge  bet- 
ter than  the  parents  when  that  time  has  come  ?  The  act  is  call- 
ed confirmation,  and  we  might  naturally  expect  it  to  be  perform- 
ed at  the  age  of  from  twelve  to  fifteen.  But  parents  are  rather 
apt  to  anticipate  the  age  of  discretion,  and  it  has  become  quite 
common  to  confirm  them  about  the  time  they  begin  to  run  alone. 
But  the  intervention  of  the  bishop,  or  of  some  one  with  his  pow- 
ers, is  necessary  to  this  operation.  I  never  witnessed  it  but 
once,  when  the  brother  of  ex-President  Herran  (now  Archbish- 
op) confirmed  a  large  number  of  children,  some  of  them  six  or 
eight  years  old,  and  some  unable  to  walk.  There  was  nothing 
imposing  in  the  ceremony.  The  bishop  gives  the  child  a  pat 
on  the  cheek  as  a  part  of  it. 

But  the  most  important  part  of  religious  training  is  the  prep- 
aration for  the  first  communion.  When  the  time  comes — say 
at  fourteen — the  child  is  withdrawn  for  a  time  from  school  and 
from  all  gayety,  and  put  under  the  care  of  a  priest.  A  chaste 
and  pious  one,  if  such  can  be  found,  is  to  be  preferred  where  the 
catechumen  is  a  girl.  Some  content  themselves  with  merely 
seeing  that  the  child  knows  all  the  catechism,  and  can  pray ;  but 
one  lady  told  me  that  her  priest  brought  her  so  into  the  pres- 
ence of  God  that  she  never  was  the  same  person  afterward  as 


182  NEW  GRANADA. 

before.  She  thinks  this  result  would  be  more  common  if  there 
were  more  good  priests.  This  first  communion  is  a  great  cere- 
mony, but  it  is  not  necessary  to  describe  it. 

In  doctrines  they  do  not  differ  so  greatly  from  other  churches 
except  as  to  the  necessity  of  the  sacraments  to  every  comfortable 
escape  from  purgatory,  and  as  to  the  existence  of  that  doleful 
place  fitted  up  expressly  for  Christians.  They  believe  in  the 
doctrine  of  the  Trinity — the  necessity  of  faith  and  repentance ; 
but  there  is  another  doctrine  to  which  they  attach  an  importance 
that  seems  to  me  a  little  extravagant.  It  is  to  the  perpetual 
virginity  of  Mary.  It  seems  to  me  a  delicate  point  to  discuss, 
and  I  may  only  hint  that  they  infer  from  it  that  her  body  never 
bore  any  anatomical  marks  of  maternity  whatever.  From  this 
they  infer  the  miraculous  birth  of  Christ,  which  was,  in  their 
opinion,  necessary  to  the  virginity  of  the  Virgin.  Decency  for- 
bids my  quoting  the  words  in  which  this  doctrine  is  taught  in 
the  child's  catechism.  I  will  give,  however,  the  conclusion — 
"just  as  a  ray  of  light  passes  through  glass  without  breaking 
or  staining  it."  It  is  supposed  that  every  person  who  does  not 
believe  this  doctrine  must  be  lost  forever. 

They  say  that  the  Virgin  revealed  to  some  one  in  a  vision, 
after  her  death,  the  peculiar  terms  on  which  she  lived  with  her 
husband,  but  to  whom,  or  when,  or  why,  I  have  never  learned. 
But  when  I  argue  that,  if  matrimony  be  a  sacrament,  it  must 
have  been  a  dreadful  sin  in  her  to  prostitute  it  to  the  mere  pur- 
pose of  saving  her  character,  and  escaping  punishment  on  a 
false  charge  of  unchastity,  they  have  no  answer  for  me. 

The  communion  is  swallowing  a  wafer,  that,  before  consecra- 
tion, was  like  a  common  white  wafer,  but  which  has  been,  by  the 
act  of  consecration,  really  converted  into  the  body  of  Christ. 
This,  the  hostia,  is  received  from  the  thumb  and  finger  of  the 
priest  into  the  mouth,  and  never  is  touched  with  unconsecrated 
hands.  The  communion  of  the  priest  is  the  mass.  As  the 
communion  must  be  taken  fasting,  it  follows  that  masses  can  be 
said  only  in  the  morning,  and  that  the  same  priest  can  say  but 
one  mass  in  a  day.  To  this  last  there  is  one  exception.  On 
the  2d  of  September  each  priest  is  bound  to  say  three  masses 
before  breakfast.  The  mass  has  already  been  described  at 
length. 


METHOD  OF  PRAYING.  183 

Every  Christian  who  is  able  is  bound  to  hear  mass  every  fes- 
tival :  to  stay  away  is  quite  a  sin.  The  next  most  important 
religious  exercise  is  the  rosary.  This  is  a  series  of  prayers  rep- 
resented by  a  string  of  beads  of  different  sizes — cuentas.  The 
company  who  are  to  be  benefited  by  this  exercise  have  one  for 
their  leader,  who  begins  and  says  a  prayer  or  two  at  the  begin- 
ning, and  then  half  of  the  Lord's  Prayer,  as  is  found  in  Luke. 
The  rest  say  the  other  half.  He  says  the  first  half  of  a  Hail 
Mary — salve — and  they  the  last  half:  so  for  nine  more  salves ; 
but  at  the  end  of  the  tenth  they  say  a  Gloria  Patri,  and  the 
party  that  ends  that  begins  immediately  on  the  Lord's  Prayer, 
and  the  leader  finishes.  They  say  that  they  have  finished  the 
first  casa — house — and  have  begun  the  second.  The  leader, 
when  he  has  finished  the  second  Gloria  Patri,  begins  the  third 
Pater,  and  thus  they  change  till  they  have  finished  five  casas, 
or  fifty  salves.  Then  they  say  some  other  things,  and  among 
them  the  creed,  which  is  their  longest  prayer.  The  corona  has 
ten  casas  like  those  of  the  rosary. 

All  families  ought  to  pray  the  rosary  at  night,  either  at  home 
or  at  church,  but  it  is  such  a  bore  that  men  generally  shirk  out 
of  it  except  on  festivals.  Some  families  pray  only  then,  and  a 
large  majority  not  even  then.  The  prayer-time  at  dusk  is  call- 
ed la  oracion,  and  the  prayers  then  held  in  the  church  wsperas 
— vespers.  The  sound  of  the  vesper-bell  was  the  preconcerted 
signal  of  that  dreadful  massacre  at  Palermo  known  as  the  "  Si- 
cilian Vespers."  The  visperas  of  any  saint  is  the  eve  before 
his  day,  and  even  the  whole  day  before. 

Persons  who  pray  can  not,  of  course,  have  their  thoughts 
fixed  on  the  words  of  the  prayer,  nor  is  that  necessary ;  but  it 
is  better  to  have  them  occupied  with  some  profitable  subject 
than  in  such  thoughts  as  are  apt  to  come  to  mind.  Protestants 
would  say  that  all  the  use  of  the  rosary  was  to  measure  off  the 
time  to  be  spent  in  meditation,  but  I  fear,  should  you  teach  this 
doctrine  to  the  people,  they  would  neither  pray  nor  meditate 
much  more.  These  prayers  may  be  either  in  Spanish  or  Lat- 
in, and  often,  when  a  priest  is  leader,  his  half  is  in  Latin  and 
the  rest  in  Spanish ;  but  the  words  of  the  mass  must  always 
be  Latin. 

Two  other  ceremonies,  or  acts  of  devotion,  that  are  first  learn- 


184  NEW  GRANADA. 

ed,  are  both  known  in  English  by  the  phrase  "  to  cross  one's 
self."  Persignarse,  derived  from  the  Latin  Per  signura  crucis, 
etc.,  is  to  say,  in  Spanish,  "By  the  sign  (touch  your  forehead) 
of  the  holy  cross  (touch  your  breast),  deliver  us  (right  shoulder) 
from  our  enemies  (left  shoulder).  Amen."  Santiaguarse  is  to 
make  a  cross  in  these  four  places,  saying,  "  In  the  name  of  the 
Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Spirit.  Amen." 

I  have  said  nothing  of  confession.  It  is  a  rare  practice,  and 
I  have  never  seen  it  but  once,  although  I  have  been  in  Bogota 
at  a  time  of  year  when  the  most  confess.  Few,  indeed,  of  the 
more  intelligent  class  ever  confess,  and,  of  course,  these  can  not 
commune,  neither  do  they  fast.  In  fact,  religion  is  in  a  great 
degree  obsolete,  especially  with  men.  There  is  nothing  to  cap- 
tivate the  senses,  no  splendor,  no  imposing  spectacles  in  the 
richest  of  their  churches.  It  is  simply  ridiculous,  like  a  boy's 
training  with  sticks  for  guns.  Only  once  did  I  see  any  thing 
that  was  an  exception  to  this,  and  that  was  la  resena,  at  the 
Cathedral ;  of  that  in  its  place.  I  will  farther  add  that,  after  an 
acquaintance  of  more  than  20  months  among  all  classes  and  in 
different  sections,  I  have  met  but  three  persons  that  I  have  known 
to  fast  from  my  own  observation :  they  were  all  females,  and 
one  was  a  little  school-girl. 

Now,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  my  lecture  is  over ;  let  us  sally 
forth  to  church.  But,  my  dear  madam,  if  you  would  not  get  us 
all  into  trouble,  take  a  little  of  my  advice  about  your  dress.  And, 
first,  lay  off  that  European  bonnet — gorra,  as  they  incorrectly 
call  it.  You  may  go  bareheaded,  wear  a  gentleman's  straw  hat, 
or  borrow  a  round-topped,  broad-brimmed  beaver  of  one  of  the 
antiquated  Bogotana  grandmammas.  Now  take  your  best  black 
silk  petticoat,  and  tie  it  on  outside  of  all  your  other  clothes  for 
a  saya.  Never  mind  your  gay  corsage :  that  will  be  hidden  by 
the  mantellina — a  large  black  silk  shawl,  bordered  with  black 
ribbon,  worn  over  your  shoulders.  The  mantellina  and  saya 
bring  down  the  lady  almost  to  the  level  of  the  Indian  woman, 
for  she  only  differs  from  you  in  wearing  the  same  fashions  in 
flannel,  black  or  blue.  No  tawdry  finery  can  enter  the  house 
of  God ;  there  is  no  scope  for  display  here. 


OLD  CHURCHES.  185 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

CHUECHES  OF  BOGOTA. 

The  City  of  Churches. — Clocks. — Advocaciones. — Las  Nieves. — Bells. — Ara. — 
Nude  Saints. — La  Tercera. — Flagellation. — San  Francisco. — Santo  Domingo. 
— Clerical  Dress. — Cathedral. — San  Agustin. — Nunneries. 

BOGOTA  is  pre-eminently  the  city  of  churches.  With  a  pop- 
ulation of  29,649,  it  has  little  short  of  30  churches,  while  Paris, 
with  its  million  of  souls,  has  but  about  50.  Of  the  numerous 
churches  there  I  have  visited  between  20  and  25,  a  feat  that  I 
doubt  whether  any  other  visitor  has  ever  accomplished.  But 
fear  not  that  I  will  give  the  results  of  all  this  labor  in  detail. 
We  must  content  ourselves  with  specimens  that  may  give  a  gen- 
eral idea  of  them  all,  if  such  a  thing  is  possible,  where  no  two 
are  more  alike  than  the  two  most  dissimilar  churches  in  all  the 
United  States. 

There  are  no  new  churches  here :  I  know  not  their  dates,  but 
judge  that  most,  if  not  all  of  them,  were  built  before  the  begin- 
ning of  the  last  century.  I  wish  to  take  you  to  a  church  that 
never  has  been  a  part  of  a  convent.  And  now  it  occurs  to  me 
for  the  first  time  that  all  these  churches  without  convents  must 
be  small  churches,  and  comparatively  poor  ones ;  so  I  must 
take  the  largest  of  them,  Las  Nieves.  Starting  from  the  Alto- 
zano,  on  the  upper  side  of  the  Plaza,  we  go  north.  In  three 
blocks  we  come  to  the  River  San  Francisco,  and  cross  it  by  the 
Bridge  of  San  Francisco.  Before  us,  on  the  left,  is  an  immense 
pile,  the  Convent  of  San  Francisco,  with  its  church  door  almost 
facing  us.  Look  on  the  tower  just  before  us.  Do  you  see  that 
town  clock,  with  a  face  of  the  same  shape,  and  of  but  little  larger 
size  than  that  of  the  old  family  clocks  of  the  last  generation  ? 
Well,  there  are  three  town  clocks  in  New  Granada  that  I  know 
of:  that  at  Guaduas  has  two  hands,  and,  I  believe,  strikes ;  that 
at  the  Cathedral,  behind  us,  strikes,  but  has  no  dial ;  and  this 
has  one  hand,  and  does  not  strike. 

We  continue  on  past  the  little  Humilladero,  La  Tercera,  and 


186  NEW  GRANADA. 

the  Hospicio,  and  on  the  next  block  but  one,  on  the  east  side 
of  the  street,  opposite  a  small  vacant  space,  which  is  all  the 
Plan  shows  of  a  plazuela  and  fountain,  is  the  Church  of  Las 
Nieves.  Our  Lady  of  the  Snows  is,  of  course,  the  Virgin  in  one 
of  her  advocaciones,  a  word  I  can  not  understand  nor  translate. 
Take,  as  an  instance  of  its  use,  Our  Lady  of  Chiquinquira. 
This  is  a  town,  82  miles  north  of  Bogota,  where,  in  1586,  a 
young  girl  was  praying  before  an  old,  dilapidated,  and  much- 
abused  picture  of  the  Virgin  in  a  kind  of  hovel.  While  gazing 
on  it,  it  raised  itself  in  the  air,  the  gaping  wounds  in  its  canvas 
closed  up,  and  it  blazed  out  in  new  colors,  and  is  now  the  most 
powerful  in  miracles  of  any  picture  or  image  in  New  Granada. 

So  there  is  the  Virgin  of  the  Ledge  (La  Pena),  of  the  Quere- 
mal,  of  Concepcion,  of  Dolores  (sorrows),  Socorro  (help),  etc., 
etc.  Each  of  these  has  its  own  form  of  representation,  which  is 
never  varied.  These  have  other  churches  dedicated  to  them  than 
that  in  which  the  original  image  was  placed,  and  the  character 
and  abilities  of  these  different  Virgins  are  very  different.  I  said 
different  Virgins  ;  I  should  have  said  different  advocations  of  the 
Virgin.  A  vow  made  to  one  is  not  payable  to  another.  All 
these  are  used  as  names  of  females,  as  Concepcion,  Dolores 
(masculine  and  plural,  with  adjectives  in  fern,  sing.),  Pilar,  As- 
cencion,  Nieves,  etc.,  etc.  But  who  Nieves  is,  or  where  and 
when  she  had  her  origin,  I  have  not  tried  to  ascertain. 

Now  for  the  church.  The  fa$ade,  like  all  the  others,  is  de- 
cidedly homely,  as  I  count  homeliness,  thougli  admirers  of  the 
Gothic  may  not  agree  with  me.  In  the  belfry  are  the  bells, 
tier  above  tier,  fewer  and  smaller  successively,  till  at  the  apex 
is  one  of  the  size  of  a  magnificent  cow-bell.  They  are  not  hung 
as  ours  are,  but  a  string  is  tied  to  the  tongue  of  each,  and  they 
are  pulled  without  the  intervention  of  any  machinery.  Of  course, 
the  largest  are  small,  for  they  have  been  brought  from  Honda 
by  mule  or  by  carguero.  There  is  no  tolling,  no  solemn  peals, 
but  a  rang-a-tang-tang  on  all  occasions,  and  as  in  all  the  city 
there  must  be  over  100  of  them  (Steuart  says  1000),  they  can 
make  considerable  noise. 

We  enter,  carefully  taking  off  our  hats  as  we  cross  the  thresh- 
old, and  the  ladies  covering  their  heads  with  their  mantellinas. 
You  are  in  a  long  room  like  a  barn,  open  up  to  the  top  of  the 


IMAGES  AND  PICTUKES.  187 

roof.  Full  in  front  of  you  stands  the  high  altar,  adorned  with 
figures  too  numerous  to  describe.  The  one  in  the  centre,  the 
Virgin  of  the  Snows,  I  suppose,  is  veiled  with  two  curtains. 
When  they  are  raised  or  lowered  it  is  with  great  pomp  and  the 
ringing  of  a  little  bell.  Of  course,  she  is  dressed  with  real 
clothes,  and  covered  with  tawdry  finery,  gilt  paper,  and  ribbons ; 
or,  in  some  cases,  with  massive  gold,  real  diamonds,  and  par- 
ticularly emeralds.  The  face,  too,  must  be  painted  and  var- 
nished, and  adorned  with  long  hair,  probably  from  the  head  of 
some  guaricha.  Light  hair,  rare  here,  is  preferred.  The  niche 
before  which  these  curtains  hang  to  cover  her  is  called  the  ca- 
marin.  Directly  under  this  is  the  sagrario,  a  little  cupboard,  in 
which  a  large  hostia  or  wafer  is  kept  constantly  in  a  costly  ap- 
paratus, the  custodia,  where  it  is  visible  between  two  watch  crys- 
tals. In  honor  of  this,  a  light  is  kept  constantly  burning  in  the 
church.  Not  all  churches  can  afford  a  custodia,  as  their  price 
varies  from  $112  (the  cheapest  I  know)  to  $16,000,  the  most 
costly  that  are  made  except  to  order.  One,  once  belonging  to 
the  Jesuits  in  Bogota,  is  said  to  have  cost  $60,000.  The  church- 
es that  have  no  custodia  can  keep  no  hostia,  and  they  have  no 
light  burning  in  them. 

Under  this  is  a  sort  of  shelf  that  contains,  let  into  it,  a  con- 
secrated stone,  the  ara,  about  18  inches  square,  and  only  over 
this  can  mass  be  said.  On  this  shelf  are  placed  the  missal-frame, 
and  other  traps  used  at  mass. 

All  along  down  the  sides  are  other  altars,  with  their  camarines 
and  saints.  It  is  quite  desirable  that  there  should  be  five  at 
least.  One  of  these  is,  in  this  instance,  in  a  capilla,  that  pro- 
jects out  beyond  the  walls  on  the  left-hand  side.  This  partic- 
ular chapel  is  remarkable  for  being  used  as  a  store-room  for  the 
twelve  apostles,  which  are  here  all  left  to  shiver  in  coarse  shirts 
— all  except  the  beloved  disciple,  who,  in  a  very  dilapidated 
robe,  leans  on  the  bosom  of  his  Master  in  robes  equally  super- 
annuated. 

Directly  over  the  door  as  we  enter  is  the  organ-loft.  There 
are  two  pairs  of  bellows  outside  of  the  organ :  it  takes  a  stout 
man  to  blow  them.  Each  is  loaded  with  a  heavy  stone,  and  the 
man  alternately  lifts  up  the  upper  valve  of  each.  The  music  is 
horrible.  I  may  as  well  get  through  this  at  once  by  saying 


188  NEW  GRANADA. 

that  in  all  New  Granada  I  have  heard  but  one  good  or  even  de- 
cent singer,  an  Italian  monk.  Even  he  had  never  studied  mu- 
sic. On  extra  occasions  secular  singers  are  hired  as  at  a  ball, 
but  they  are  poor  at  that,  and,  but  for  the  performers  of  the  mil- 
itary band,  poor  indeed  would  be  the  music  on  the  most  urgent 
occasion.  Rarely  is  it  better  than  none. 

Often  there  are  no  seats  in  the  church.  In  Bogota  there  are 
generally  a  series,  placed  end  to  end,  running  down  from  the 
high  altar  to  near  the  door  on  each  side  of  the  central  line ;  so 
the  occupants  of  the  seats  sit  facing  each  other,  6  or  8  feet  apart. 
The  seats  are  occupied  by  men  only :  all  females  sit  fiat  on  the 
floor,  or  on  a  pellon  carried  by  a  servant.  The  pellon  is  a  rug, 
like  the  finest  that  we  lay  at  our  doors  for  a  mat,  and  is  used 
for  a  bed,  on  the  saddle,  and  for  a  seat  in  church.  As  the  floor 
abounds  in  fleas,  and  creatures  still  more  unclean  are  carried 
away  from  there — as  all  women  spit  on  it,  and  as,  in  the  uniform- 
ity of  mantillas  and  sayas,  it  is  difficult  to  find  a  friend  or  judge 
of  a  stranger,  a  crowded  church  is  a  disagreeable  place  for  a  lady. 
The  men  who  do  not  get  seats  stand.  No  woman  stands  or 
sits  on  a  bench,  and  no  man  sits  on  the  floor.  Only  when  they 
kneel  are  they  all  on  a  level.  Now  comes  the  signal  for  all  to 
kneel :  the  little  bell  at  the  altar — the  bells  in  the  tower — the 
merriest  strains  of  music,  all  mark  the  elevation  of  the  hostia  as 
the  crisis  of  the  mass.  The  women  rise  and  the  men  sink,  and 
all  are  together  on  their  knees.  This  moment  was  once  fixed 
upon  by  some  assassins,  one  of  whom  was  the  officiating  priest, 
to  strike  the  fatal  blow,  that  the  victim  might  die  adoring  the 
hostia,  and  in  the  most  favorable  circumstances  for  salvation. 
The  same  motive  seems  to  have  guided  another  priest,  who  poi- 
soned his  victim  with  the  communion  hostia. 

But  we  are  tired  of  the  church ;  let  us  return.  We  will  not 
try  to  enter  the  scanty  Church  of  the  Poor-house,  once  a  Jesuit 
convent.  It  is  rarely  opened,  or,  rather,  I  never  knew  its  front 
door  to  be  unbarred.  So  we  proceed  on  to  La  Tercera.  La  Ter- 
cera  means  The  Third.  There  are  three  orders  of  St.  Francis. 
The  first  is  of  Franciscan  friars,  the  second  of  the  nuns  of  San- 
ta Clara,  and  the  third — Tercera  Orden — is  of  men  and  wom- 
en, who  may  marry  and  hold  property.  To  join  it  is  to  prom- 
ise an  unusual  strictness  in  religion,  and  you  can,  with  more 


FLAGELLATION.  189 

propriety,  be  buried  in  a  friar's  habit.  The  Tercera  is  hardly  a 
Cofradia.  This  is  an  association  paying  a  small  sura  statedly, 
like  a  burial  society  or  benevolent  association,  for  the  sake  of 
liberating  each  other's  souls  from  Purgatory.  These,  in  large 
places,  often  consist  of  men  in  the  same  line  of  business. 

La  Tercera  is  a  sombre  church.  It  is  remarkable  as  destitute 
of  both  paint  and  gilding ;  but  the  carving  is  elaborate  enough. 
I  can  hardly  get  a  good  idea  of  the  use  that  is  made  of  the  con- 
vent which  belongs  to  it,  which  is,  you  remember,  joined  to  the 
Convent  of  San  Francisco  by  a  bridge.  At  stated  times  it  is 
the  theatre  of  Ejercicios.  A  company  of  women  arrange  about 
their  board,  and  go  in  there,  and  are  shut  in.  No  one  goes  out, 
and  no  message  comes  in  for  nine  days.  Friends  may  die  and 
they  know  nothing  of  it.  To  each  is  given  a  scourge  (disciplina) 
and  a  cilicio — a  contrivance  made  to  press  points  of  wire  against 
the  flesh.  It  looks  like  a  flat  chain,  between  one  and  two  inch- 
es wide,  made  of  small  wire.  The  scourging  is  done  in  the  dark, 
and  each  satisfies  her  own  conscience.  La  Senora  de  Tal  as- 
sures me  that  she  has  been  through  that  mill,  probably  to  ease 
her  conscience  after  some  great  fault.  Here  I  have  frequently 
seen  them  praying  in  cross,  as  it  is  called,  with  their  arms  wide 
spread  in  the  form  of  a  cross,  often  displaying  a  large  string  of 
beads. 

But  we  will  proceed  back  toward  the  Plaza.  The  Humilla- 
dero  on  our  left,  and  La  Vera  Cruz — the  True  Cross — in  the 
middle  of  the  Convent  of  San  Francisco,  on  our  right,  must  be 
passed,  because  they  are,  as  usual,  locked.  We  enter  the 
Church  of  San  Francisco.  I  first  visited  it,  I  believe,  on  Saint 
Francis's  day.  Never  was  decoration  so  elaborate ;  and  the 
church  itself  was  meant  to  be  rich :  the  walls  are  covered  with 
carvings,  and  almost  the  whole  interior  of  the  church  is  gilded 
with  ancient  heavy  red  gold.  The  crowd  was  enormous,  and 
the  ceremonies,  as  usual,  stupid.  A  great  many  new  figures  and 
pictures  were  brought  out.  The  explanations  of  many  of  them 
were  written  with  chalk  or  soap  on  looking-glasses ;  and  the 
number  of  these  aids  to  reflection  that  are  found  among  altar 
ornaments  in  New  Granada  is  wonderful,  but  the  most  of  them 
are  cracked  or  otherwise  damaged.  I  take  one  of  these  figures 
as  an  example.  It  was  cut  out  of  pasteboard,  and  painted,  and 


190  NEW  GRANADA. 

set  up  on  edge.  The  looking-glass  below  said,  "  Saint  Francis, 
in  order  to  convince  a  heretic  prince,  shows  the  hostia  to  an  ass, 
which  immediately  kneels."  I  saw  the  church  lighted  up  at 
night  with  more  candles  than  I  ever  before  saw  in  one  room. 
The  monks  were  climbing  like  ants  in  little  galleries  high  up 
the  wall,  now  hugging  a  saint  for  support,  now  climbing  in  or 
out  of  port-holes.  They  were  lighting  candles  wherever  they 
could  reach.  Now  down  comes  a  blazing  candle :  take  care  of 
your  shaven  crowns  below !  But,  with  all  this  blaze  of  can- 
dles, the  church  was  darker  (I  noticed  particularly)  than  our 
New  York  churches  ordinarily  are  on  a  Sabbath  evening. 

I  went  into  the  convent :  it  was  the  first  I  ever  visited.  You 
do  not  meet  so  good  treatment  here  as  with  the  Agustinians, 
but  the  pictures  will  pay  a  visit.  They  are  usually  covered 
with  large  screens  hanging  by  hinges  from  the  top :  on  this  day 
these  were  all  drawn  up.  The  pictures  are  a  series,  illustrating 
the  life  of  Saint  Francis.  I  am  not  sure  now  whether  it  begins 
before  or  after  his  birth.  They  are  large,  say  five  feet  by  six, 
but  of  no  artistic  merit.  The  most  interesting  one  to  me  is 
Saint  Francis  preaching  to  the  fishes.  His  audience  are  thrust- 
ing their  faces  out  of  the  water,  not  "with  ears  erect"  indeed,  but 
with  their  large  eyes  staring  out  of  their  heads,  and  their  mouths 
agape  with  a  wonderful  expression  of  credulity.  A  stork  near 
the  saint's  feet  is  poised  demurely  on  one  leg,  one  eye  fastened 
on  the  preacher,  while  the  opposite  one  may  be  stealthily  esti- 
mating the  weight  of  some  beloved  object  in  the  audience.  I 
confess  it  reminds  me  of  some  things  which  I  have  seen  at 
church  before. 

All  these  pictures  are  in  the  corredor  of  the  principal  patio. 
There  are  several  other  patios,  some  of  them  gardens  that  are 
absolutely  uncultivated.  I  made  some  vain  attempts  to  see 
the  library.  I  fear  they  were  ashamed  to  show  it.  I  got,  how- 
ever, a  glimpse  of  the  kitchen  and  its  productions.  The  room 
is  spacious  enough  for  a  hotel  kitchen,  but  of  the  fare  I  should 
be  a  poor  judge.  My  taste  certainly  differs  from  that  of  the 
sleek  brethren.  Monasticism  is  not  dead  yet:  some  of  the 
monks  are  quite  young.  I  made  them  several  calls,  but  got 
very  little  more  insight  into  their  life  than  at  first. 

We  now  recross  the  Bridge  of  San  Francisco,  and  proceed 


JONVENT  OF   SANTO  DOMINGO.  191 

along  the  Calle  Real  to  the  Church  of  Santo  Domingo.  Saint 
Dominic's  name  is  not  very  fragrant  in  New  Granada,  and  very 
few  children  are  named  after  him.  In  the  Spanish  of  Robinson 
Crusoe,  his  man  Friday  bears  the  name  of  Dominic — Domin- 
go— which  means  Sunday.  Still,  this  unpopular  saint  of  the 
Inquisition  has  the  richest  convent  of  monks  in  Bogota.  It 
owns  all  the  block,  and  on  two  sides  of  it  are  the  best  business 
stands  in  the  city.  It  had  also,  till  recently,  the  right  to  the 
great  gains  of  the  church  at  Chiquinquira,  to  the  curacy  of 
which  they  appointed  their  oldest  monk,  knowing  that  he  could 
not  hold  the  fat  office  long.  This  church  is  said  to  be  rich  in 
fine  paintings,  but  those  that  interested  me  most  were  a  series 
of  smaller  paintings  than  those  in  San  Francisco,  illustrating 
the  life  of  Saint  Dominic.  There  is  horrible  spelling  in  the  in- 
scriptions under  them,  b  and  v  being  inexplicably  confused.  One 
says,  "  God  deliberating  whether  to  send  down  war,  plague,  or 
famine  to  chastise  the  wickedness  of  men,  Saint  Dominic  pre- 
vails on  him  to  send,  instead  of  either  of  them,  the  Inquisition." 

A  second  shows  the  saint  arguing  with  a  batch  of  female  her- 
etics. Failing  otherwise  to  convince  them,  he  opens  their  eyes 
to  behold  the  air  over  their  heads  filled  with  devils.  Pity  he 
ever  had  worse  coadjutors  in  the  work  of  conversion. 

Here,  in  a  third,  are  all  the  monks  in  the  first  Dominican 
convent,  with  their  books  open,  singing  their  matins  at  mid- 
night, when  in  comes  the  devil  to  stop  them,  and  puts  out  all 
their  lights.  What  a  to-do !  The  day  of  friction  matches  is 
yet  future ;  smoking  has  not  yet  come  into  vogue ;  the  devil 
has  had  the  audacity  to  extinguish  even  the  light  burning  in 
honor  of  the  hostia.  Indeed,  there  may  be  no  fire  nearer  than 
the  distant  kitchen,  where  monks  are  wont  to  keep  a  fire  with 
the  diligence  of  Vestals.  Without  a  light  they  can  not  pray ; 
and  if  the  Prince  of  Darkness  invade  the  chapel  in  spite  of  light 
and  prayer,  what  will  he  not  do  when  he  has  annexed  it  to  his 
own  dominions  and  silenced  the  holy  strains?  Here  was  an 
emergency,  and  a  saint  equal  to  it.  In  the  picture  you  behold 
the  Saint  of  Fire  and  Fagot  producing  a  flame  from  his  own 
breast  to  relight  the  candles. 

Another  shows  us  a  dormitory  where  all  the  monks  are  on 
beds  on  the  floor,  sleeping,  with  their  heads  to  the  wall.  The 


192  NEW  GRANADA. 

Virgin  has  descended  with  a  hisopo— a  sprinkler,  made  of  sil- 
ver, and  shaped  like  the  doubly  conical  sieve  of  a  watering-pot. 
A  female  companion  attends  her,  unconscious  of  any  impropri- 
ety in  the  transaction,  bearing  a  pot  of  holy  water.  She  goes 
round  the  room,  sprinkling  and  blessing  all  but  one,  who  "  loses 
the  blessing  because  he  is  not  sleeping  decently."  This  un- 
lucky chap,  instead  of  lying  flat  on  his  back,  and  straight,  like 
all  the  others,  has  partly  risen,  and  is  watching  the  transaction 
— a  fortunate  circumstance,  without  which  the  world  would  have 
known  nothing  of  it. 

The  church  itself  is  spacious  and  rich,  though  not  so  indis- 
criminate a  use  is  made  of  gold  as  in  San  Francisco.  The  main 
altar  is  not  at  the  end  of  the  church,  but  leaves  quite  a  comfort- 
able space  behind  it  completely  screened  oiF. 

I  at  first  mistook  for  "uncolored  lithograph  a  small  painting 
that  is  said  to  be  worth  one  or  two  thousand  dollars.  It  is  by 
Vasquez.  Gregorio  Vasquez  (Ceballos)  was  born  in  Bogota, 
perhaps  about  the  year  1700,  and,  if  not  the  greatest  painter 
that  ever  saw  the  New  World,  has,  at  least,  been  excelled  by 
none  that  never  saw  the  Old.  The  works  of  Vasquez  are  very 
numerous,  and  of  quite  unequal  merit.  Many  of  them  have 
been  carried  abroad,  and  many  others  are  lost  or  ruined,  or  near- 
ly so,  by  neglect.  In  some,  the  very  canvas  is  pierced  with 
holes  to  attach  jewels,  lace,  or  muslin.  The  picture  of  which  I 
speak  is  not  a  fair  specimen  of  his  powers  of  coloring,  nor  can  it 
be  fairly  criticised,  as  it  is  covered  with  glass.  It  is  a  mere  fe- 
male head,  of  the  size  of  life,  on  the  door  of  the  sagrario,  I  be- 
lieve, of  the  last  and  favorite  altar  on  the  left  hand. 

Perhaps  we  ought  to  notice  the  dress  of  the  Dominicans  be- 
fore leaving.  I  premise  that  all  the  priests  here  wear  robes 
reaching  to  their  feet,  with  or  without  pantaloons,  just  as  they 
please.  The  hats  of  the  clergy  have  an  enormous  brim,  and 
rolled  up  at  the  sides,  and  are  so  large  that  they  pay  $1  60 
duty,  while  a  layman's  hat  pays  but  eighty  cents. 

The  reverend  character  to  which  I  here  introduce  my  reader 
is  not  a  priest,  but  an  eminent  statesman,  and,  as  these  lines  go 
to  press,  a  candidate  for  the  presidency.  No  other  man  did 
more  to  bring  about  the  Revolution  of  1851  than  Mariano  Os- 
pina ;  but  when  the  government  wished  suitably  to  recompense 


CLERICAL   DRESS. 


193 


HABIT    OF    THE    JESUITS. 


his  services,  he  was  no- 
where to  be  found.  His 
modesty  led  him  to  shrink 
from  the  public  gaze,  and, 
when  he  would  change  his 
quarters  one  night,  the 
keen  eye  of  some  friend 
who  was  very  anxious  to 
meet  him  recognized  him 
in  the  habit  of  the  Order 
of  Jesuits,  his  big  rosary 
hanging  down,  so  conven- 
ient if  he  should  happen  to 
want  to  pray.  As  a  sub- 
stitute for  street  lamps, 
he  carries  the  inseparable 
companion  of  a  Bogotano's 
night  excursions.  So  here 
we  have  Don  Mariano,  ta- 
ken from  a  grave  Granadan  caricature,  to  serve  us  as  a  model 
of  the  dress  of  regulars  or  monks.  That  of  the  Dominicans — 
rivals  to  the  Jesuits  in  our  hate — consists  of  a  white  flan- 
nel habit  under  a  black  one.  Each  order  has  its  peculiar 
habitos. 

The  dress  of  the  seculars — priests  that  are  not  monks — is 
radically  different  from  the  regulars.  They  wear  no  habitos. 
Their  innermost  visible  dress  is  short,  and  has  sleeves :  it  is 
called  chaqueta.  Over  this  comes  the  sotana,  without  sleeves, 
extending  down  to  the»heels  like  female  dress,  only  scanty,  not 
containing  more  than  three  breadths,  as  tire  ladies  say.  Over 
this,  in  all  weathers,  they  wear  a  cloak — manteo — with  or  with- 
out a  hood.  The  dress  is  alike  ungraceful  and  inconvenient. 

Before  leaving  Santo  Domingo,  look  at  that  lady  dressed  in 
white  flannel.  She  is  called  a  Beata — a  blessed  one.  She  is 
a  devotee  that  confesses  daily,  takes  a  sort  of  pastoral  oversight 
of  every  family  in  which  she  can  get  a  footing,  aids  some  favor- 
ite priest  in  getting  masses  to  say,  and,  in  a  word,  is  a  profes- 
sional busy-body.  Beatas  are  represented  in  a  Bogota  paper  to 
be  rarely  handsome  or  young,  mostly  married,  and  a  nuisance 

N 


194  NEW  GRANADA. 

generally  in  every  house  but  their  own,  a  place  they  do  not  in- 
fest much. 

We  now  proceed  to  the  Cathedral.  It  is  an  old  building, 
having  been  founded  15th  of  March,  1572.  It  is  said  to  be  the 
design  of  a  native  artist,  and,  to  judge  of  his  work,  we  must 
know  his  limiting  circumstances.  What  the  building  lacks  in 
point  of  proportion  is  height.  The  proposition  of  the  German 
householder  in  New  York,  that  "  ground  is  cheap  up  in  the  air," 
may  not  always  be  true  in  a  country  subject  to  earthquakes. 
Let  us  suppose,  then,  that  he  dared  not  add  the  other  ten  or 
twenty  feet  that  the  building  needs :  he  must  disguise  the  defi- 
ciency. In  the  fa9ade,  the  altozono  does  this  to  a  considerable 
extent,  and,  to  make  up  the  rest,  the  towers  were  run  up  even 
too  high  for  their  strength,  as  it  seems,  for  they  now  bear  in 
their  upper  works  the  marks  of  the  great  earthquake.  But 
why  not  diminish  the  area  down  to  due  proportions?  This 
would  not  do,  for  the  room  was  really  wanted  for  processions, 
and  to  hold  the  immense  crowds  that  must  get  in,  even  though 
they  can  not  see. 

Now,  as  you  enter,  you  find  right  before  you  an  immense 
box,  so  to  speak,  some  twenty  feet  high,  thirty  feet  square,  and 
open  at  the  top.  This  is  called  the  coro — choir.  The  walls  on 
three  sides  are  four  feet  thick ;  and  the  other  side,  toward  the 
altar,  is  an  open  grating  of  iron.  In  the  thickness  of  the  wall 
is  a  spiral  staircase,  and  on  top  are  two  organs,  and  space  for 
hired  musicians  and  hired  male  singers. 

The  institution  within  this  box  is  a  mystery  to  me.  The 
personnel  of  it  seems  to  be  a  dozen  or  so  of  a  higher  class  of 
priests,  called  canonigos,  a  word  that  I  believe  is  translated 
prebendaries,  and  a  few  boys — minoristas — dressed  in  red  flan- 
nel, and  some  kind  of  white  girl-clothes  of  cotton  or  linen  reach- 
ing down  to  the  waist.  You  may  find  this  concern  in  full  blast 
every  Sunday  at  about  3  P.M. ;  but,  after  watching  them  care- 
fully, you  may  not  know  more  about  them  than  what  I  now  tell 
you.  Each  has  his  own  seat,  partitioned  off  from  the  rest  by 
arms,  as  in  the  Fulton  ferry-boats,  and  the  seat  rises  on  hinges. 
These  seats  may  have  been,  in  English,  stalls,  and  to  take  pos- 
session of  them,  to  be  installed.  The  seats  run  around  three 
sides  of  the  room,  and  in  two  rows,  one  above  the  other.  The 


CATHEDRAL.  195 

centre  stall  in  the  upper  row  was  always  vacant.  This,  I  sup- 
pose, belonged  to  Archbishop  Mosquera,  as  the  one  on  the  right 
of  it  was  occupied  by  Dr.  Herran,  then  the  Provisor,  and  now 
Archbishop.  I  conjecture  that  the  service  has  degenerated  down 
from  singing,  as  they  were  reading  aloud  in  a  drawling  manner, 
now  one  at  a  time  and  now  all  together,  but  always  unintelligi- 
bly, in  which  respect  they  resemble  some  of  the  able  choristers 
of  the  North. 

My  mind  runs  back  to  my  theory.  I  imagine  that,  when  a 
coro  was  first  built,  it  was  filled  with  the  sweetest  male  singers 
that  could  be  found  in  the  land,  regardless  of  expense,  that  it 
might  be  a  model  of  sacred  music  to  the  whole  people,  and  a  joy 
to  all  those  who  could  treat  themselves  to  a  visit  to  the  Cathe- 
dral. If  that  be  true,  never  was  there  a  case  of  more  complete 
perversion  of  original  designs.  If  I  might  doubt  my  senses,  and 
think  that  the  horrible  din  was  to  holier  ears  delightful  music, 
still  the  fact  remains  that  I  have  never  seen  an  audience  of  even 
one  beside  myself.  And  yet  this  establishment  cost  the  prov- 
ince of  Mariquita  $1148  80  annually  for  the  salaries  of  the  chap- 
ter, as  these  canonigos  are  called,  or  $1669,  including  all  their 
share  of  the  expenses  of  the  Cathedral.  And  the  nearest  point 
of  the  province  is  more  than  two  days'  journey  from  the  Ca- 
thedral ! 

A  man  showed  me  a  picture,  hanging  on  the  side  of  the  choir, 
that  he  considered  miraculous,  or  nearly  so.  "You  see  that 
horse,"  says  he.  "  Now  stand  full  in  front  of  him,  then  to  the 
left,  then  to  the  right,  and  the  horse's  head  will  follow  you  as 
you  go." 

"Do  I  understand  you,  then,"  said  I,  "that  you  should  ex- 
pect to  get  so  far  round  to  the  right  as  to  see  the  left  side  of 
the  head  and  neck  ?" 

"  Como  no  ?"— "  Why  not  ?" 

""Well,  I  should  regard  it  as  a  decided  miracle  if  you  could 
get  so  far  round  as  to  see  the  side  of  the  head  the  artist  had  not 
painted,  or  cease  to  see  the  side  that  he  had  painted." 

"  Quien  sabe,  senor  ?" 

Once  in  front  of  the  choir  you  see  more  of  the  building.  Vast 
and  lofty  pillars,  with  gilded  capitals,  support  the  roof.  Projec- 
tions inward  from  the  side  walls  furnish  a  large  number  of  al- 


196  NEW  GRANADA. 

coves  or  chapels,  each  with  its  altar,  and  confessionals  are  scat- 
tered around  with  a  profusion  that  seems  to  imply  that  once 
they  were  more  demanded  than  in  these  degenerate  times.  In 
fact,  the  whole  establishment,  if  worked  one  day  to  the  utmost, 
must  be  capable  of  delivering  a  small  army  from  Purgatory ; 
but  it  is  mostly  locked,  and,  when  opened,  is  generally  as  quiet 
as  a  Saratoga  hotel  in  February. 

The  space  from  the  steps  of  the  choir  to  those  of  the  high  al- 
tar is  more  liberally  seated  than  in  any  other  church.  Here 
alone  are  several  seats,  one  behind  another,  provided  for  the 
"  Seminario  conciliar,"  theological  school,  as  inscriptions  indi- 
cate, besides  the  line  of  seats  running  up  the  centre.  The  great 
altar  itself  is  a  detached  lofty  pile,  rising  far  toward  the  roof, 
and  helping  to  mask  the  vast  extent  of  the  Cathedral.  To  one 
of  the  pillars,  between  the  choir  and  the  altar,  is  the  pulpit,  ex- 
quisitely carved  and  gilded.  It  has  a  sounding-board  over  it, 
of  the  antique  New  England  pattern. 

Behind  the  altar  is  still  a  very  considerable  space,  enough  for 
a  small  church.  The  immense  area  of  the  Cathedral  is  thus 
broken  up,  so  that  at  no  point  can  the  eye  measure  it.  And  so 
far  is  it  from  the  possibility  of  a  united  audience,  so  many  the 
obstructions  that  cut  off  the  view,  that  I  knew  of  one  case 
where  a  young  couple,  under  the  influence  of  a  waltz  played 
by  the  hired  musicians  on  the  top  of  the  choir,  during  the  serv- 
ices of  an  evening  in  Holy  Week  yielded  to  the  temptation  and 
danced. 

Between  two  sacristias  of  vast  proportions  is  yet  another 
chapel  of  considerable  pretensions  to  beauty.  The  contents  of 
the  sacristias  must  be  costly,  although,  as  a  church,  the  Cathe- 
dral is  poor — quite  poor  compared  with  Santo  Domingo.  But  so 
many  performers  must  dress  in  these  green-rooms  with  a  great 
variety  of  habits  (and  these  paramentos,  as  well  as  the  orna- 
mentos  of  the  altar,  must  vary  in  color  according  to  the  day), 
that  the  number  and  cost  of  them  must  be  very  great. 

Now  let  us  go  to  the  -church  that  I  like  best,  San  Agustin, 
and  it  shall  be  the  last.  We  keep  along  south  in  the  same  street 
in  which  we  have  been  all  this  chapter,  till  we  cross  the  Bridge 
of  San  Agustin.  On  our  right  now  lies  a  ragged  place,  like  a 
fractional  vacant  lot,  called  the  Plazuela  of  San  Agustin,  and 


AGUSTINIAN  CONVENT.  197 

on  this  fronts  the  convent.  I  once  heard  here  some  really  toler- 
able singing,  and  tried  to  get  in,  but  all  the  doors  were  locked. 
I  have  often  visited  it  since,  always  disappointed  in  the  music, 
but  otherwise  pleased. 

The  high  altar,  like  that  of  the  Cathedral,  stands  clear,  so 
that  processions  can  march  all  round  it.  But  you  must  not  im- 
agine there  is  any  dignity  or  splendor  in  these  processions.  A 
part  of  this  consists  of  six  poles,  always  held  awry,  to  the  tops 
of  which  is  attached  a  piece  of  silk  as  large  as  the  cover  of  a 
Rockaway  wagon,  but  no  attempts  are  made  to  keep  it  stretched 
out  smooth.  Under  this  walks  a  priest  with  the  eustodia,  and 
as  the  procession  marches  round,  all  the  kneeling  multitude  turn 
round  toward  it  like  sunflowers,  so  that  when  the  procession 
has  performed  a  revolution  round  the  altar,  they  have  revolved 
once  around  their  axes.  I  was  complimented  here  once  with  the 
offer  of  the  first  candle  in  a  procession,  a  candle  a  yard  long,  but 
I  felt  constrained  to  decline  the  honor.  I  was  struck  in  seeing  a 
monk,  at  the  close  of  that  procession,  extinguish  his  light  by  put- 
ting the  lighted  wick  against  the  pavement,  exactly  as  we  see  it 
in  allegorical  pictures. 

There  are  here  two  or  three  capillas  quite  removed  from  the 
body  of  the  church,  one  of  which  would  make  a  nice  little  church 
by  itself,  only  that  its  principal  door  comes  out  of  the  main 
church. 

I  wish  to  call  your  attention  to  two  pictures  here,  which  have 
interested  me  more  than  any  others  in  Bogota,  not  so  much  on 
account  of  the  superiority  of  the  execution  as  the  design.  In 
one,  on  the  back  of  the  high  altar,  our  Savior  awaits  the  prep- 
aration of  his  cross.  He  has  been  maltreated  terribly,  and  from 
his  side  a  large  piece  of  skin  is  gone,  laying  bare  the  ribs.  An 
executioner,  having  occasion  to  use  both  hands,  holds  a  large 
spike  in  his  teeth :  he  is  stooping  down,  and  looks  up  at  you, 
and  the  want  of  two  teeth  from  the  vigorous  set  he  shows  gives 
him  an  air  of  ferocity  that  makes  you  shudder.  The  only  oth- 
er figure  is  the  Virgin,  overwhelmed  with  grief,  but  much  young- 
er than  her  son.  But  the  cross  itself  interests  me.  It  is  not  a 
new  one,  but  an  old  thing,  once  handsome,  painted  green,  but 
cracked  by  the  sun,  bruised  by  rough  usage,  and  polluted  with 
the  stains  of  numerous  executions. 


198  NEW   GRANADA. 

The  other  picture  is  on  the  right-hand  side  of  the  altar,  and 
is  interesting  from  the  subject — the  marriage  of  Joseph  and  Mary. 
Joseph,  contrary  to  the  practice  of  Italian  artists,  is  young,  does 
not  look  like  having  had  children  by  a  previous  marriage,  nor 
on  the  verge  of  imbecility.  The  Virgin  here,  as  every  where, 
is  always  young.  I  know  not  whether  the  Church  claims  per- 
petual youth  for  her,  but  certain  it  is  that  if  any  painter  dared 
to  make  her  decrepit  and  wrinkled  in  her  last  days,  the  Inquisi- 
tion would  burn  him,  if  it  could. 

I  have  found  considerable  courtesy  in  this  convent,  and  would 
prefer  a  visit  here  to  any  other.  Luther  was  an  Agustinian. 
But  I  have  not  time  to  take  you  over  the  convent.  On  the  next 
block  south,  on  the  left  hand,  is  the  parish  church  of  Santa  Bar- 
bara, who  is  always  represented  as  in  the  act  of  having  her 
throat  cut.  The  church  is  quite  small,  but  has  a  picture  of 
great  reputation  for  efficacy.  All  these  nine  churches  and  con- 
vents are  on  one  street,  and  there  stand  two  more  at  its  two  ex- 
tremities at  the  edge  of  the  city — the  Convent  of  San  Diego  at 
the  north,  and  Las  Cruzes  at  the  south. 

We  will  visit  but  the  chapel  of  a  single  nunnery.  I  have 
never  tried  to  get  into  the  interior  of  any  of  them.  I  should 
have  no  difficulty  in  getting  permission,  but  I  should  not  have 
found  enough  of  interest  to  pay.  We  will,  for  variety's  sake, 
turn  one  block  down  the  San  Agustin,  cross  on  a  log,  and  go 
toward  the  lower  side  of  the  Plaza.  The  first  building  on  our 
left  as  we  go  south  is  the  Quartel — barracks — of  San  Agustin. 
On  the  next  block,  on  the  left,  is  quite  a  good  front  to  a  public 
boy's  school.  I  was  passing  here  one  Sabbath,  and,  finding 
there  were  boys  in  there,  I  hoped  to  find  a  Sabbath-school.  Vain 
hope !  it  was  only  a  rehearsal  of  an  examination  that  was  soon 
to  come  off.  On  the  corner  of  the  next  block,  on  the  right,  stands 
the  Observatory.  Now  the  spacious,  never-to-be-finished  cap- 
itol  is  on  our  right  for  a  whole  block,  and  we  come  to  the  Plaza 
at  the  corner  diagonally  opposite  the  Cathedral.  We  turn  down 
west,  having  on  our  right  first  the  Casa  Consistorial,  then  the 
prison  opposite  the  cabinet  offices,  and  then  the  next  two  blocks 
on  our  right  are  devoted  to  the  immense  convent  of  La  Concep- 
cion,  which  occupies  two  blocks  in  the  heart  of  the  city. 

A  bird's-eye  view  of  Bogota  would  surprise  you  with  the  num- 


NUNNERIES  OF  BOGOTA.  199 

ber  of  churches  and  the  size  of  the  convents.  Many  of  the  con- 
vents have  already  been  taken  from  the  Church,  and  convert- 
ed to  some  purpose  more  useful  to  the  descendants  of  those 
whose  money  built  them,  such  as  schools,  hospitals,  etc.,  but 
the  space  occupied  by  the  remainder  is  enormous,  and  they  are 
said  to  own  about  half  the  real  estate  of  Bogota. 

The  number  of  monks  and  nuns  can  not  be  great,  for,  in  the 
32  Granadan  convents  there  are  but  697  persons,  exclusive  of 
469  servants  and  97  pupils.  All  of  these  could  find  space 
enough  in  a  single  convent  of  this  city.  Jolly  times  they  must 
have  had  of  it  till  Archbishop  Mosquera  took  away  the  nuns' 
horses,  abolished  their  theatres,  forbade  their  masquerading  in 
male  attire,  and  allowed  even  to  the  aged  and  infirm  but  two 
servants  each.  Even  now  their  sufferings  can  not  be  excessive, 
for  in  Santa  Ines  there  are  73  servants  and  but  46  other  in- 
mates. Nuns  are  never  suffered  to  leave  their  convents,  nor 
have  I  ever  heard  of  any  recent  charges  of  their  violating  their 
vows. 

In  the  middle  of  the  wall  of  La  Concepcion,  on  the  right  hand, 
begins  that  of  Santa  Ines  on  the  left.  This  was  the  first  church 
in  Bogota  that  I  entered.  It  was  Sunday,  and  I  had  Don  Fu- 
lano's  little  boy  for  a  guide.  Amid  all  the  other  profanations 
of  the  Sabbath  around  me,  I  was  not  surprised  to  hear  a  hand- 
organ,  and  instinctively  looked  round  for  the  monkey.  I  had 
forgotten  where  I  was.  The  hand-organ  proved  to  be  a  church 
organ,  and  the  accompaniment  was  mass  in  a  nunnery.  33ut  the 
singing  was  horrible.  In  no  other  nunnery  is  there  any  choir, 
and  here  the  music  is  all  by  nuns,  who  only  can  learn  of  each 
other,  and  have  little  motive  to  learn.  It  was  as  bad  as  the 
fighting  of  cats. 

Two  stories  of  the  nunnery  are  grated  off  from  the  body  of 
the  church.  The  lower  part  of  the  church  has  two  gratings  of 
iron,  four  feet  apart,  extending  all  across  the  end  opposite  the 
altar.  Behind  the  gratings  is  a  curtain.  Above  is  a  grating  of 
broad  slats  of  wood,  along  all  the  one  side  and  the  end  of  the 
church.  Not  much  can  be  seen  of  those  within. 

The  walls  of  the  church  of  Santa  Ines  are  covered  with  a  se- 
ries of  pictures,  representing  scenes  from  her  life,  in  all  of  which 
she  is  accompanied  by  a  lamb  that  seems  never  to  grow  bigger. 


200  NEW  GRANADA. 

In  the  first  picture  the  lamb  is  looking  on  to  see  the  future  saint 
take  that  first  washing  which  we  of  the  coarser  sex  seldom  are 
permitted  to  witness.  A  maid  is  carrying  something  to  drink 
in  a  tea-cup  (set,  as  always  here,  on  a  plate  instead  of  a  saucer) 
to  the  newly-delivered.  She  is  lying  in  a  sort  of  berth  or  bunk 
— cuja — quite  inappropriate,  professional  men  think,  to  her  situ- 
ation. 

The  sacristy  is  to  appearance  in  the  body  of  the  convent,  but 
it  is  supposed  to  have  no  other  door  than  that  which  leads  into 
the  church.  A  confessional,  placed  so  that  the  priest's  right  ear 
is  close  by  a  perforated  tin  plate  in  the  wall,  is  a  necessary  part 
of  the  furniture  of  a  convent. 

The  sacristan  of  a  convent  is  sometimes,  if  not  always,  a  man. 
I  have  seen  the  keys  of  the  outer  door  drawn  up  into  an  upper 
window  of  the  convent  after  closing  at  night,  as  if  thus  to  show 
that  all  communication  with  the  world  was  cut  off. 

Now  this  is  all  I  know  about  nunneries.  Farther  investiga- 
tions pay  neither  for  making  nor  reciting.  There  is  little  or  no 
beauty  about  them.  Youth  and  intelligence  must  be  very  scarce 
in  institutions  so  obsolete,  now  happily  verging  to  extinction. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

PARAMO   AND   POLITICS. 

Dancing. — Mules,  Bulls,  and  Horses. — Quesada,  the  Conqueror. — Bolivar  and 
Santander. — Colombia :  its  Rise,  History,  and  Disruption. — One  or  two  Re- 
bellions.— Heroic  and  frail  Woman. — Hail. 

AND  now  you  must  be  tired  of  churches.  I  have  been  for 
these  long  months.  I  will  defer  to  another  time  the  remainder 
of  the  tedious  details  of  dull  ceremonies,  which  must  not,  how- 
ever, be  omitted  in  a  faithful  picture  of  a  country  in  which  they 
were  once  regarded  as  of  the  highest  importance.  Let  us  rusti- 
cate a  while,  and  take  a  series  of  trips  around  the  capital. 

Bogota,  being  situated  at  the  western  foot  of  a  mountain  range, 
is  half  surrounded  with  mountain  and  half  with  plain.  My  vis- 
its have  chiefly  been  to  the  mountains.  I  will  take  these  up  in 
the  order  of  the  points  visited,  beginning  at  the  north.  I  take 


DEMOCRATIC  DANCE.  201 

first,  then,  the  expedition  of  December  1st,  1852 — the  longest, 
the  most  disagreeable  and  unprofitable  of  them  all.  I  wished 
to  see  a  paramo — a  region  too  cold  for  cultivation.  I  set  out 
very  early  in  the  morning,  mounted  on  a  fine  horse,  kindly  lent 
me  by  our  minister,  Mr.  King,  and  accompanied  by  Dr.  Hoyos 
and  Senor  Triana,  of  the  Chorographic  Commission.  We  went 
along  the  Alameda,  which,  after  passing  San  Diego  (c),  becomes 
merely  a  macadamized  road,  leading  toward  the  salt-mines  of 
Cipaquira,  the  emerald-mines  of  Muzo,  and,  more  than  all,  to- 
ward the  fane  of  the  miraculous  and  miracle-working  picture 
of  Chiquinquira. 

We  leave  this  convent  a  little  to  the  right,  and  the  two  cem- 
eteries twice  as  far  to  the  left,  and  the  road  bends  slightly  to 
the  west.  Next  we  cross  a  brisk  little  stream — the  Rio  Arzo- 
pispo — and  soon  come  to  a  collection  of  houses,  called  Chapine- 
ro.  Just  beyond,  I  picked  some  flowers  from  a  black  cherry- 
tree — Cerasus  Capollin — so  like  our  own  native  black  cherry 
that  I  should  not  know  but  by  comparison  that  it  is  not  C. 
Virginiana.  As  I  have  never  seen  it  except  on  road-sides  just 
out  of  Bogota,  it  may  well  be  an  introduced  tree,  and,  for  the 
same  reason,  I  have  never  been  able  to  judge  of  its  fruit.  It  is 
here  called  cerezo.  This  and  a  willow — sance,  Salix — are  the 
only  trees  growing,  even  by  cultivation,  on  the  plain  of  Bogota, 
or  near  the  city  on  the  mountains. 

On  the  left  is  a  hacienda,  to  which,  at  a  later  period,  I  walk- 
ed with  Mr.  Green,  to  see  something  of  a  political  festival  to 
celebrate  the  accession  of  the  Liberals  to  power  on  the  famous 
7th  of  March,  1849.  We  staid  but  a  short  time,  and  left  before 
the  affair  was  fully  under  way,  as  our  worthy  representative 
soon  tired  of  the  affair.  We  saw  some  dancing  worth  notice. 
In  a  small  room  near  the  entrance  there  was  a  fiddle  or  clarinet 
playing,  in  anticipation  of  the  military  band  yet  to  arrive. 
Two  or  three  females,  not  of  the  highest  class,  were  present, 
and  ten  times  as  many  of  their  peers  of  the  other  sex.  Two  of 
them  stood  up  to  waltz.  In  two  minutes  a  second  man  stepped 
in  and  took  the  place  of  the  first,  without  breaking  the  time.  A 
third  and  a  fourth  succeeded,  till,  the  girl  becoming  tired,  her 
place  was  supplied  by  another  in  the  same  way.  How  long  the 
waltz  lasted  uninterrupted  I  can  not  say,  as  we  came  off.  If 


202  NEW  GRANADA. 

the  musicians  had  relieved  each  other  in  the  same  way,  there  is 
no  saying  when  the  time  would  have  varied  or  the  step  ceased. 
In  nothing  is  the  Granadino  more  indefatigable  than  in  dancing, 
either  by  night,  or,  as  in  this  instance,  by  day. 

A  few  miles  farther  on  we  turned  off  to  the  right,  and  took 
leave  of  the  road,  the  second  in  New  Granada,  though  a  little 
out  of  repair.  Keeping  closer  to  the  base  of  the  mountain,  at 
length  we  climb  it.  This,  like  chopping  off  a  man's  head,  can 
be  said  in  three  words,  but  the  performance  is  no  trifling  mat- 
ter. We  were  mounted  on  horses  unused  to  climbing.  On 
our  way  up  we  were  overtaken  by  a  loaded  bull  from  Bogota. 
We  were  amused  to  see  how  little  he  made  of  climbing  where 
our  fine  animals  were  put  to  their  utmost.  For  the  very  worst 
of  roads  they  are  surer  of  foot  than  a  mule,  but  can  not  super- 
sede them  on  any  other.  Mules  are  quicker,  and  will,  I  think, 
carry  a  much  heavier  load.  A  rnule  costs  much  more  than  a 
horse.  They  are  surer  of  foot,  but  I  suspect  they  can  not  en- 
dure more.  The  fact  is,  that  the  mule  will  not  let  you  abuse 
him  as  a  horse  will.  A  horse,  to  escape  the  lash  or  the  spur, 
will  exert  himself  till  he  will  never  see  another  day  of  health ; 
but  when  the  mule  can  do  no  more  without  injury  to  his  con- 
stitution, he  is  as  conscientious  as  a  politician :  urge  him  as  you 
will,  he  will  do  no  violence  to  that  sacred  trust.  Hence  mules 
are  a  semi-barbarous  institution,  as  cargueros  are  a  barbarous 
one ;  and  as  cargueros  have  successfully  opposed  the  opening 
of  mule-roads  in  some  instances,  so  the  Spanish  institution  of 
mules  has  opposed  itself  to  wheel-roads,  and  in  one  instance,  in 
the  mother  country,  even  to  the  opening  of  a  railroad  when 
completed ! 

The  bull  left  us,  but  we  were  rising  rapidly.  How  the  vast 
plain  stretched  itself  out  beneath  us  !  Sheets  of  water  covered 
as  much  of  it  as  at  any  time  of  the  year,  for  the  rainy  season 
was  nearly  past.  Off  against  us  stood  Funza,  said  to  have  been 
the  capital  of  the  Muiscas,  the  most  powerful  nation  in  New 
Granada,  when,  in  March,  1537,  the  indefatigable  Gonzalo  Ji- 
menes  de  Quesada,  whose  name  for  heroism  should  stand  with 
those  of  Cortes  and  Pizarro,  and  for  moral  worth  (small  praise) 
above  them  both,  first  saw  this  plain.  He  had  left  Santa  Mar- 
ta  nearly  a  year  before  with  more  than  800  men.  After  strug- 


THE  PARAMO.  203 

gling  with  the  wilderness,  storms,  starvation,  and  disease  for 
more  than  9  months,  he  had  risen  from  the  banks  of  the  Opon 
with  only  170  men  left.  These  had  brought  with  them  (in  some 
places  literally  carried  bodily !)  62  horses ;  and  with  these  he 
made  his  way  to  this  vast  plain  beneath  us,  conquered  the  Muis- 
cas,  and  other  Chihcha  nations,  without  receiving  any  re-enforce- 
ments. Quesada  survived  the  various  dangers  of  wars,  conspir- 
acies, and  law,  and  died  of  leprosy  in  Mariquita,  beyond  Honda, 
10th  February,  1579,  at  the  advanced  age  of  nearly  80. 

We  rise  higher,  and  vegetation  is  ever  changing.  Here  I  no- 
ticed for  the  first  time  a  peculiar  and  beautiful  shrub  of  the  Til- 
iate  order,  the  Vallea  stipularis,  with  its  copious  pink  blossoms 
and  pretty  leaves,  larger  and  thinner  than  shrubs  at  this  alti- 
tude often  indulge  in,  not  unlike  those  of  the  poplar.  A  still 
more  beautiful  Ericate  shrub,  the  Befaria  resinosa,  bears  here  the 
name  of  pega-pega,  from  its  sticky  blossoms,  an  inch  long,  grow- 
ing in  dense  clusters,  of  a  rich  rose-color  of  all  shades,  from  the 
deepest  to  the  most  delicate.  Here  only  did  I  find  them  with 
so  little  varnish  as  to  be  readily  detached  from  the  paper  in 
drying. 

At  length  we  ceased  to  ascend.  At  the  top  we  found  a  hilly 
country  rather  than  a  plain,  and  on  a  distant  hill  saw  a  tree. 
We  descended  to  a  hacienda,  consisting  of  three  mud  cottages. 
The  largest  was  in  the  form  of  two  sides  of  a  square,  and  had 
three  habitable  but  very  small  rooms,  apparently  for  the  occu- 
pancy of  one  man,  not  very  nice,  but,  judging  from  his  chapel, 
particularly  pious. 

The  other  houses  were  at  a  little  distance,  and  were  a  house 
for  a  dependant,  and  a  kitchen.  From  the  gentleman's  bed-room 
a  bell-pull  extends  to  the  other  house,  a  contrivance  almost  un- 
known in  this  country — the  first  bell  I  have  seen,  in  fact,  large 
or  small,  except  those  in  churches.  We  left  our  horses  in  one 
of  the  vacant  rooms,  and  sallied  out  for  plants.  We  were  soon 
driven  in  by  a  storm,  for  the  paramo  had  got  angry,  as  they 
say  here. 

We  were  kept  wet  and  cold  a  long  time  at  the  house,  while 
they  were  preparing  some  chocolate  for  us  at  the  kitchen,  on  the 
strength  of  a  friendship  between  the  proprietor  and  Dr.  Hoyos. 
I  walked  up  and  down  two  of  the  rooms  to  gain  heat.  It  was 


204  NEW  GRANADA. 

actually  hailing  without,  the  nearest  approximation  to  snow  ever 
ventured  on  here. 

Dr.  Hoyos  and  Triana  are  on  opposite  sides  in  politics,  and 
we  may  as  well  listen  to  them  a  little.  I  kept  no  notes,  but  ii 
I  have  exaggerated  any  the  opinions  of  the  Liberales,  as  they 
fell  from  the  enthusiastic  young  botanist  in  employ  of  govern- 
ment, it  must  be  under  the  influence  of  the  still  more  enthusiastic 
young  poet  and  jefe  politico  of  Ambalema,  Jose  Maria  Samper 
(Agudelo),  whose  "  Apuntamientos"  is  the  fairest  specimen  of 
republicanism  "run  into  the  ground"  I  ever  saw. 

As  for  the  pious  Dr.  Hoyos,  once  an  attendant  on  the  pious 
and  eminent  priest  and  botanist,  Mutis,  his  sentiments  repre- 
sent those  of  the  few  pious  men  of  the  nation,  the  extreme  right 
of  the  Conservadores.  As  Samper  may  be  regarded  as  the  type 
of  the  youngest  of  Young  Granada,  speaking  through  Triana, 
so  may  Don  Mariano  Ospina,  not  inaptly  clothed  in  Jesuit  robes, 
on  page  193,  be  the  oracle  of  respectable  fogyism,  as  represent- 
ed below  by  the  mature-minded,  slow,  almost  regressive  Hoyos. 

Below  us,  on  the  plain,  was  a  hacienda  of  ex-President  San- 
tander's.  Taking  that  for  our  text,  we  make  Triana  observe : 

To  that  man  New  Granada  owes  more  than  she  ever  has  or 
ever  will  to  any  other. 

Dr.  Hoyos.  We  owe  much  to  Santander  indeed,  but  had  it 
not  been  for  Bolivar,  we  should  have  had  no  chance  to  owe  any 
thing  to  Santander  or  to  any  other  patriot.  Without  a  man 
like  Bolivar,  a  general  equal  to  Napoleon,  and  a  statesman  equal 
to  Washington,  our  distracted  country  would  have  contended  in 
vain,  not  so  much  against  the  courage  as  against  the  numbers, 
ferocity,  and  brutality  of  the  Goths  of  the  mother  country  (me- 
tropoli). 

T.  I  can  agree  with  you  only  in  what  relates  to  Bolivar's 
military  talents.  As  a  statesman,  the  Vice-president  Santan- 
der, residing  in  Bogota  while  the  Libertador  was  at  the  head  of 
the  army,  directed  judiciously,  except  when  the  impetuous  war- 
rior dictated  some  decree  from  the  camp  to  throw  into  confusion 
the  sagest  provisions  of  the  "  Man  of  the  Laws."  And  small 
merit  was  it  to  deliver  us  from  a  transatlantic  tyrant,  to  rule  us 
himself  as  a  dictator  in  Bogota ! 

II.  What  Bolivar  did  was  a  necessity  forced  upon  him  by 


DICTATORSHIP  OF  BOLfVAB.          205 

the  confusion  and  political  ignorance  of  the  country.  For  eleven 
years,  from  the  glorious  20th  of  July,  1810,  to  the  Congress  of 
Ciicuta  in  1821,  we  were  without  a  form  of  government.  Boli- 
var was  elected  President,  and  Santander  Vice-president  under 
that  Constitution,  but  the  liberty  of  the  country  was  yet  to 
achieve.  The  changes  introduced  into  our  condition  by  that 
Constitution  were  too  great  and  too  violent.  We  had  no  expe- 
rience in  self-government,  for  which  we  have  even  to  go  to  the 
English  language  for  a  name ;  every  thing  had  been  left  to  ex- 
ecutive power,  and  now  the  executive  was  too  weak. 

T.  It  was  rather  too  strong  than  too  weak.  The  executive 
is  the  only  dangerous  element  of  government,  the  only  depart- 
ment that  has  ever  turned  despot.  Instead  of  the  changes  be- 
ing too  great  and  too  sudden,  they  were  too  timid  and  too  few 
to  meet  the  wants  of  the  case.  Not  a  rag  of  the  old  system  of 
tyranny  ought  to  have  been  left  for  a  day.  The  authors  of  that 
cowardly  Constitution  were  afraid  of  their  own  shadows.  They 
had  no  confidence  in  the  power  of  democratic  institutions,  and 
therefore  dared  not  install  the  true  republic.  Instead  of  freeing 
all  the  slaves  at  once,  it  meanly  ordains  the  freedom  at  18  of 
all  thereafter  born,  leaving  the  others  to  be  ransomed  by  the 
slow  operation  of  a  fund.  Capital  punishment,  the  connection 
between  Church  and  state,  the  exemption  of  the  clergy  and  mil- 
itary from  civil  courts,  and,  indeed,  the  army  itself,  is  inconsist- 
ent with  republicanism.  So  are  all  monopolies,  all  limitations 
of  the  right  of  suffrage,  all  restrictions  on  the  liberty  of  the 
press,  imprisonment  for  debt,  and,  in  a  word,  every  particle  of 
the  institutions  handed  down  to  us  by  our  tyrants. 

H.  And  you  would  have  all  changed  at  once  ? 

T.  Certainly  ;  it  was  the  only  course  that  could  have  given 
the  country  rest. 

H.  Now,  to  my  mind,  such  a  beginning  would  have  been 
clearly  impossible.  And  the  restlessness  of  political  enthusi- 
asts, that  let  themselves  loose  upon  the  government,  both  from 
the  forum  and  the  press,  with  plans  and  language  alike  extrav- 
agant (to  say  nothing  of  revolutionary  schemes),  was  just  what 
necessitated  more  severity  in  administration,  and  more  restraint 
on  the  press.  Bolivar's  work  was  not  to  administer  a  free  gov- 
ernment, but  to  prepare  a  liberated  people  for  liberty.  He  would 


206  NEW   GRANADA. 

have  steadily  advanced  to  that  end,  had  not  turbulent  spirits, 
like  Dr.  Francisco  Soto  and  Dr.  Vicente  Azuero,  been  perpetual- 
ly thwarting  every  measure  of  preparation. 

T.  What  preparation,  nor  what  dead  baby  ?*  Do  you  call 
re-establishing  convents  that  had  been  abolished;  strengthen- 
ing the  power  of  the  priests,  that  had  been  destroyed  by  their 
adhesion  to  the  cause  of  tyrants ;  issuing  arbitrary  decrees  to 
abrogate  contracts  fairly  made  (that  for  the  navigation  of  the 
Magdalena,  for  instance) ;  placing  restrictions  on  the  schools, 
and  delivering  them  over  to  the  priesthood  bound  hand  and  foot 
— do  you  call  that  the  work  of  preparation  for  freedom  ? 

H.  We  shall  never  agree  on  questions  as  to  priests  and 
schools.  I  know  that  I  am  in  a  hopeless  minority,  but  I  have 
right  on  my  side,  as  you  must  confess,  or  avow  yourself  no 
Christian.  But,  apart  from  this,  Bolivar  opposed  himself,  not 
to  the  will  of  the  people,  but  to  the  ravings  of  political  lunatics. 
Elected  by  the  Convention  of  Cucuta,  he  was  re-elected  by  the 
people  in  1825,  after  these  acts  of  regression,  as  you  call  them. 
But  demagogues  who  sought  office,  not  the  good  of  the  people, 
beset  his  course,  till,  in  1827,  he  resigns.  His  resignation  is 
not  accepted,  and,  as  a  last  resort,  he  again  appeals  to  the  peo- 
ple in  the  Convention  of  Ocana. 

T.  I  wonder  that  you  dare  allude  to  the  Convention  of 
1828.  A  candid  history  of  the  years  1827  and  1828  would 
fully  bear  out  Samper's  remark,  that  the  liberators  of  a  country 
ought  to  meet  with  any  other  reward  than  a  share  in  its  subse- 
quent government.  General  Paez  had  risen  in  rebellion  against 
Colombia  on  the  30th  April,  1826,  from  motives  of  sheer  ambi- 
tion, and  with  no  other  pretense  even.  Bolivar  visits  him,  con- 
cocts plans  with  him,  manifests  open  friendship  for  him,  and  then 
returns  to  Bogota  and  resigns  the  presidency.  His  tools,  who 
were  in  majority  in  the  Congress  of  1827,  refuse  to  accept  his 
resignation,  and  call  the  Convention  of  Ocana  for  the  express 
purpose  of  adding  to  his  power.  Meanwhile,  what  is  going  on 
at  Guayaquil  ?  The  Intendant  there  is  Tomas  Cipriano  Mos- 
quera,  the  proudest,  if  not  the  richest  man  in  New  Granada, 

*  i  Que  preparation  ni  que  nino  muerto  ?  The  ne  plus  ultra  of  uselessness 
with  a  Spaniard  is  a  dead  baby,  or  sometimes  calabashes — ,;  Que  preparacion  ni 
que  calabazas  ? 


OCANA  CONTENTION.  207 

the  head  of  the  royal  family  of  New  Granada,  for  he  now  is  ex- 
president,  brother  of  an  ex-president,  father-in-law  of  an  ex-pres- 
ident, and  brother  of  an  archbishop  [since  deceased]. 

II.  And  all  of  them  worthy  of  the  highest  posts  they  ever 
filled. 

T.  Well,  our  Chevalier  Bayard,  "sans  peur  et  sans  re- 
proche,"  as  you  call  Mosquera,  proclaims  Bolivar  dictator. 

If.  A  masterly  step,  by  which  Mosquera  had  nothing  to 
gain,  and  on  which  hung  the  last  hope  of  the  integrity  of  the 
nation,  which  hope  had  two  fatal  obstacles  to  contend  with : 
the  transcendental  chimeras  of  you  Liberales,  and  the  ambition 
of  a  hundred  intriguers  for  high  offices,  including  twenty  who 
wanted  to  be  president.  But  go  on. 

T.  Well,  the  Convention  meets  March  2d,  1828,  the  black- 
est year  of  Colombian  history. 

II.  You  may  well  say  that.     But  go  on. 

T.  Bolivar  is  in  the  minority.  He  locates  himself,  with 
3000  troops,  at  Bucaramanga,  as  near  Ocana  as  he  dares  come. 
There,  after  trying  in  vain  to  intimidate  the  majority,  he  in- 
duces a  minority  of  twenty  to  secede  on  the  10th  June,  and  leave 
them  without  a  quorum  ;  and  then,  three  days  after,  on  the  13th 
June,  Pedro  Alcantara  Herran,  who  married  into  the  royal  fam- 
ily, calls  an  assembly  in  Bogota,  and  again  proclaims  Bolivar 
dictator,  as  his  father-in-law  had  done  the  year  before  in  Guay- 
aquil. 

H.  And  for  the  same  reasons,  and  better.     But  go  on. 

T.  The  Liberator  and  Enslaver  accepts  the  post.  On  the 
27th  of  August  of  this  same  1828  he  issues  his  organic  decree, 
virtually  abolishing  the  Constitution  of  1821. 

H.  And  in  September? 

T.  In  September,  but  for  the  interposition  of  a  prostitute 
lodged  in  the  palace,  he  would  have  met  the  reward  of  his 
deeds. 

H.  You  admit,  then,  that  the  conspirators  of  1828  had  de- 
cided to  assassinate  him  who  had  sacrificed  all  his  property, 
endured  starvation  and  the  cold  of  the  paramos  with  the  com- 
mon soldiers,  and  risked  his  life  in  a  hundred  battles  for  the 
freedom  of  his  country  ? 

T.  When  a  benefactor,  turned  tyrant,  is  protected  by  such 


208  NEW 

men  as  the  Mosqueras  and  the  Herranes,  and  by  that  unfail- 
ing foe  to  liberty,  a  standing  army,  there  is  on  cheaper  or 
better  remedy — no  other  in  this  case.  What  is  necessary  is 
right.* 

H.  And  who  was  the  head  of  this  conspiracy  ? 

T.  There  was  no  head.  Seven  young  men  of  Bogota  pre- 
sided each  over  his  section. 

H.  Youths  who  had  never  seen  a  battle,  and  knew  the  use 
of  no  other  weapon  than  a  poniard.  But  Santander  ? 

T.  There  is  no  doubt  but  that  the  Vice-president,  robbed  of 
his  office  a  few  weeks  before  by  a  tyrannical  decree,  and  who, 
on  the  dictator's  death,  would  be  the  constitutional  President, 
knew  something  of  what  was  going  on ;  but  he  had  no  direct 
part  in  the  conspiracy,  and  was  condemned  to  death  without 
any  evidence  of  complicity.  You,  Senor  Norte  Americano,  have 
seen  the  autos  of  the  trial  in  Colonel  Pineda's  collection  of 
pamphlets,  have  you  not  ? 

I.  I  saw  them,  and  the  commutation  of  the  sentence  from 
death  to  banishment  in  Bolivar's  own  hand-writing,  but  I  did 
not  examine  them  farther. 

II.  And  now  let  me  tell  you  how  it  was :  Bolivar's  dictator- 
ship was  in  accordance  with  the  wishes  of  all  lovers  of  stability, 
but  was  contrary  to  the  theories  of  certain  young  students  of 
Jeremias  Bentam,  and  in  the  way  of  hundreds  of  projects  of 
personal  ambition.     All  these  pointed  to  Bolivar's  death  as  the 
cutting  of  a  Gordian  knot,  but  the  final  result  could  have  been 
nothing  but  terrific  anarchy.     Santander  and  Bolivar  were  dif- 
ferent by  nature,  and  could  not  work  together  in  such  tempestu- 
ous scenes.     We  will  hope  that  the  Vice-president  would  have 
kept  himself  free  from  such  a  stain  on  his  character  had  he  not 
felt  himself  injured  by  the  decree  of  the  27th  August,  1828. 
The  conspiracy  extended  even  to  Popayan,  and  doubtless  em- 
braced both  Lopez  and  Obando,  but  it  became  so  nearly  discov- 
ered that  the  mine  had  to  be  sprung  almost  at  an  hour's  notice, 
at  midnight  between  25th  and  26th  September,  1828.     The  as- 
sassins, covered  with  blood,  are  already  at  the  palace  door,  and 
the  guards  are  already  overpowered  by  the  sword  and  dagger, 
when  the  Liberator  first  learns  his  danger.     He  resolves  to  die 

*  See  Samper's  Apuntamientos,  pp.  102-106. 


ATTEMPT  TO  ASSASINATE  BOLIVAK.  209 

a  Roman  death,  and  proceeds,  unarmed,  to  meet  his  murderers. 
But  Manuela  Saenz — 

T.  Has  ever  any  president,  since  the  bachelor  Bolivar,  kept 
a  mistress  in  the  very  palace  ? 

H.  Our  best  presidents  have  had  their  failings  as  men.  The 
heroism  of  this  woman  (to  be  classed  only  with  Rahab)  has 
changed  the  whole  face  of  our  history,  and  saved  us  from  one 
civil  war  more.  She  detains  Bolivar — directs  him  to  the  east- 
ernmost window,  the  last  in  the  Palace  as  you  go  up  toward  the 
theatre.  He  drops  from  it,  only  eight  or  nine  feet,  into  the 
clear  street,  goes  up  to  the  corner,  turns  south  to  the  River 
San  Agustin,  and  hides  under  the  bridge  two  blocks  above  the 
Bridge  of  San  Agustin. 

I.  And  Manuela  ? 

H.  The  woman,  who  has  never  thought  of  dressing,  meets 
the  assassins  on  the  stairs,  dares  them  to  kill  her,  and  declares 
that  otherwise  they  can  come  no  farther.  They  are  past  her ; 
the  stains  of  bloody  hands  are  on  her  white  robes,  but  she  is 
otherwise  uninjured,  and  the  Liberator  is  safe.  And  while  he 
lives  there  is  no  hope  of  the  success  of  the  conspiracy.  A  few 
of  the  leaders  paid  the  penalty  of  their  lives,  and  others  were 
banished.  Santander  himself  continued  in  banishment  till,  in 
1832,  he  was  elected  President. 

I.  What  became  of  Bolivar  ? 

H.  He  returned  that  day  to  the  palace.  One  unfortunate 
attempt  more  was  made  against  his  power  in  Antioquia,  where 
poor  Jose  Maria  Cordova,  who  had  fought  at  Bolivar's  side,  high 
in  rank  though  still  a  boy,  was  stretched  on  the  bloody  field  of 
Santuario.  This  fatal  day  was  in  the  year  18^8.  General 
O'Leary,  now  British  embassador  in  Bogota  [since  dead],  com- 
manded the  Dictator's  troops  on  that  occasion. 

Bolivar  was  superseded  in  1830  by  Joaquin  Mosquera,  the 
last  President  of  Colombia.  True,  Tomas  Cipriano  was  his 
brother,  and  a  good  president,  his  bitterest  and  most  ambitious 
enemies  being  judges :  he  was  none  the  worse  for  being  of  good 
family.  A  new  Constitution  was  at  the  same  time  adopted ;  but 
Paez  in  Venezuela,  and  Florez  in  Ecuador,  secured  the  rejection 
of  both  President  and  Constitution,  and  a  bloodless  and  com- 
plete dismemberment  of  Colombia  was  effected  in  1831. 

O 


210  NEW  GRANADA. 

Bolivar,  when  relieved  from  office,  retired  to  Cartagena.  The 
'  man  who  had  encountered  more  perils  than  any  other  of  his  gen- 
eration died  a  natural  death,  at  San  Pedro,  near  Santa  Marta, 
on  17th  December,  1830;  and  he  died  poor,  after  so  long  pos- 
session of  supreme  power. 

We  may  suppose  the  discussion  to  have  reached  this  point, 
when  the  arrival  of  something  warm  from  the  kitchen  gave  a 
new  turn  to  things.  I  do  not  introduce  this  as  a  fair  specimen 
of  the  conflicting  accounts  from  which  the  traveler  has  to  form 
his  opinions,  for  the  statements  I  have  given  could  have  hardly 
been  expected  to  occur  unmixed  with  falsehoods,  believed  or  not 
believed  by  the  narrator,  and  exaggerations  which  it  would  be 
difficult  to  pare  down  to  proper  dimensions ;  but  by  giving  these 
details,  I  may  escape  coming  to  a  conclusion  in  a  doubtful  matter. 

Of  the  precise  nature  of  the  something  warm  I  can  say  noth- 
ing. I  think  I  have  recollected  enough  for  one  day,  so  you  will 
excuse  my  stating  its  name,  composition,  or  how  it  tasted.  This 
over,  and  followed  by  some  dulce  from  the  cojinetes  of  the  pious 
conservador,  we  began  to  turn  our  thoughts  homeward. 

I  have  not  yet  spoken  of  my  zamarras.  Don  Fulano  thought 
it  not  respectable  for  me  to  ride  out  without  zamarras,  so  he  lent 
me  his.  They  are  a  sort  of  overalls,  or  imperfect  pantaloons  of 
hide — I  should  judge,  in  this  instance,  of  bull's  hide.  Certain  it 
is  that,  once  in  them,  I  was  as  helpless  as  a  modern  knight  in 
ancient  armor.  It  took  two  to  extract  me  from  them  and  en- 
case me  in  them ;  to  mount,  I  had  to  climb  on  a  bench ;  and 
when  I  dismounted,  it  seemed  as  if  the  saddle  was  sticking  to 
me.  It  was  months  before  I  repeated  the  experiment,  and  then 
with  a  more  pliable  pair.  Zamarras  are  exhibited  in  the  figures 
of  the  Orejon,  the  Carguero  and  Babe,  and  the  Vaquero.  In 
ihe  last  they  are  of  the  skin  of  the  tigre,  called  jaguar  in  other 
Spanish  countries,  which  I  suppose  to  be  the  Felis  discolor,  the 
most  formidable  animal  of  the  New  World,  but  fortunately  rath- 
er rare,  and  cowardly. 

Once  fairly  stuck  upon  my  horse,  I  had  time  to  look  again  at 
the  weather.  The  ground  was  white  with  hail,  but  now  it  nei- 
ther hailed  nor  rained.  Fatilis  descensus  was  not  written  on  the 
side  of  a  wet  mountain.  Before  the  rain  the  descent  would 
have  been  difficult,  now  it  was  absolutely  dangerous.  Both  my 


HAIL-STORM.  211 

friends'  horses  fell  with  them  during  the  trip,  but  we  escaped 
unhurt.  In  some  places,  after  again  reaching  the  plain,  we  found 
five  inches  of  hail!  In  a  fit  of  absence  of  mind,  it  seemed  nat- 
ural enough  to  me.  I  forgot  that  to-day  is  here  reckoned  the 
first  day  of  summer,  or,  as  we  would  call  it,  of  the  dry  season. 
The  terms  seem  equally  inapplicable  to-day.  This  crop  of  hail- 
stones is  counted  a  blessing,  and  is  eagerly  treasured  up  for  ice 
creams. 

Indeed,  the  plain  had  been  visited  by  no  ordinary  storm. 
Roads  were  turned  into  rivers.  Encumbered  as  were  our  hands, 
to  say  nothing  of  my  zamarras,  it  was  no  easy  task  to  pick  our 
way.  Triana  suggested  that  our  horses  might  profit  by  the  ad- 
vice to  Virgil's  ram,  Non  bene  ripce  creditur;  which,  I  affirm, 
coincides  with  the  idea  of  Horace,  that  the  Ibis  is  safest  in  the 
middle:  "In  medio  tutissimus  ibis /"  while  the  conservador, 
with  a  caution  habitual  to  his  creed,  suggests  that,  if  we  follow 
the  advice  of  such  heathen,  we  may  have  occasion  to  cry,  Depro- 
fundis  clamavi.  However,  we  reached  home,  before  dinner  of 
necessity,  but  near  night,  not  very  richly  rewarded  for  our  jour- 
ney except  by  the  good  we  derived  from  each  other's  company. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

MONTSERRATE  AND  THE  BOQUERON. 

Aqueduct. — Bathing  Excursion. — Houses  not  Homes. — Quinta  of  Bolivar. — Hill 
Difficulty,  and  a  Way  of  doubtful  Holiness.  —  Chapel.  —  Perpetual  Snow.  — 
Some  nice  Plants.  —  A  cold  Region  and  its  Inhabitants.  —  The  Boqneron.  — 
Leneras. — Scarcity  of  Wood. 


IN  the  last  chapter  I  mentioned  passing  the  Rio  Arzobisp< 
Archbishop  River — which  bursts  down  from  the  mountains  just 
beyond  the  northern  limits  of  our  Plan  on  page  153,  and  hurries 
down  into  the  plain  to  join  the  Bogota. 

One  day  I  wished  to  bathe.  The  most  attentive  friend  I  had 
in  Bogota,  who  could  never  do  too  much  for  me,  conducted  me 
here.  We  were  to  start  at  ten,  but  he  was  occupied  till  twelve. 
En  fact,  it  is  almost  impossible  to  set  out  at  a  fixed  time  here. 
We  proceeded  along  the  Alameda  till  we  came  to  the  convent 


212  NEW  GRANADA. 

of  San  Diego  (c  in  the  Plan),  when  we  began  obliquely  to  ascend 
the  foot  of  the  mountain.  We  soon  struck  the  aqueduct  that 
supplies  our  part  of  Bogota.  It  is  a  sort  of  drain  a  foot  wide, 
with  the  water  six  inches  deep.  Most  of  the  way  it  is  covered, 
but  not  so  as  to  protect  it  from  surface  wash. 

It  had  recently  rained,  and  the  water  at  the  pila  was  of  a  rich 
brown  color,  but  where  it  entered  the  head  of  the  aqueduct 
through  a  small  strainer  it  was  perfectly  clear.  I  did  not  like 
very  well  to  know  that  the  dirt  I  drink  had  been  so  recently  in- 
corporated with  my  chocolate. 

We  followed  the  acequia  to  its  origin,  and  the  river  upward 
from  this  point.  Soon  the  climbing  became  arduous,  and  at  two 
(our  dinner  hour  at  home)  we  stood  together  at  a  fine  fall  of  twen- 
ty feet  into  a  pretty  little  basin.  I  began  to  make  preparations 
for  a  bath,  but  my  guide  and  physician  assured  me  that  the  wa- 
ter was  too  cold  and  I  too  warm. 

The  barrier  before  us  seemed  insuperable.  We  passed  it, 
however,  at  the  risk  of  our  necks,  to  another  fall  and  basin  very 
similar  to  the  lower,  arid  just  above  it.  We  came  near  being 
imprisoned  here  by  a  shower  making  absolutely  impassable  the 
dangerous  path  we  had  climbed. 

High  above  us  on  the  cliff  was  a  man  throwing  down  sticks 
and  roots  for  fuel.  They  fell  to  a  spot  near  the  path  by  which 
we  had  been  coming  up  here,  but  before  we  had  passed  the  place 
where  his  projectiles  struck,  he  had  completed  his  load,  descend- 
ed with  an  unbroken  neck,  drawn  his  ropes  out  from  a  hiding- 
place  where  we  had  seen  them,  bound  the  fagots  on  his  shoul- 
ders, and  gone  to  sell  them. 

Our  descent  was  not  so  easy.  We  could  not  tell  why  we 
came  there,  as,  though  the  lower  falls  yielded  us  a  large  num- 
ber of  plants,  and  some  very  rare  ones,  a  Vaccinium  among  the 
rest,  there  was  nothing  new  that  we  wanted  after  passing  the 
first  point  where  our  bones  were  in  danger.  Farther  down  was 
an  Aroid  plant  in  flower  that  I  must  have.  We  could  not  reach 
it.  We  looked  about  for  a  stick  to  pull  it  down  with.  Absurd 
idea!  every  stick  big  enough  to  strike  a  mule  with  has  long 
since  been  carried  to  town  and  sold  for  fuel.  But  I  must  have 
it ;  so  I  mounted  Dr.  Pacho  on  my  shoulders,  as  he  was  the 
lighter  and  I  the  stronger.  He  could  barely  reach  it,  but  after 


KIO  AEZOBISPO.  213 

several  good  pulls  down  came  it,  he,  and  I  in  a  heap  together. 
Farther  on,  we  passed  the  proper  place  without  even  discussing 
the  proposition  of  bathing,  as  night  was  now  approaching.  I 
returned  loaded  with  rare  plants. 

On  the  banks  of  the  river,  below  where  we  first  came  upon 
it,  was  the  smallest  human  habitation  I  ever  have  seen  or  ex- 
pect ever  to  see.  It  was  so  small  that  I  could  not  have  lain 
straight  in  it  except  diagonally,  and  its  breadth  and  height  were 
less  than  the  length.  I  have  seen  poorer  houses,  however,  for 
it  was  tight,  and  had  a  door  that  would  fasten,  and  was  fasten- 
ed: it  was  a  house,  and  not  a  hovel.  But  a  house  is  not  al- 
ways a  home.  I  know  not,  indeed,  that  there  is  really  a  home 
except  among  the  northern  races  of  Europe.  I  know  of  no  word 
nearer  to  it  than  casa — house — in  Spanish,  and  have  not  once 
found  it  a  loved  place,  as  home  is  with  us,  in  all  my  wanderings. 
The  perennial  absence  of  fires  for  warmth  may  have  something 
to  do  with  it.  In  this  respect  our  poorest  cabin  stands  as  far 
above  the  richest  residences  in  Bogota  as  they  excel  the  little 
kennel  against  the  eaves  of  which  I  was  leaning,  looking  over 
the  ridge-pole  as  some  sad  thoughts  passed  through  my  mind. 

The  next  visit  in  geographical  order  was  Montserrate,  the 
chapel-crowned  peak  that  hangs  over  the  north  end  of  the  city. 
Senor  Triana,  the  young  conservador  and  botanist,  was  here  my 
companion.  The  time  of  day  he  selected  was  before  breakfast, 
and  being,  perhaps,  the  most  prompt  man  in  New  Granada,  he 
called  for  me  at  daylight.  I  went  at  once,  to  the  astonishment 
of  the  servants,  and  to  the  great  scandal  of  my  hosts  when  they 
found  that  I  had  gone  out  without  my  chocolate.  I  carried 
with  me,  however,  the  materials  necessary  for  that  beverage, 
and  a  small  tin  pail  in  which  to  boil  it. 

If  the  reader  will  turn  to  the  Plan  of  Bogota  on  page  153,  he 
will  see  in  the  northeast  corner  the  quinta,  or  country-seat  of 
Bolivar,  marked  there  with  the  letter  d.  We  threaded  our  way 
through  the  city  to  the  point  where  a  dotted  line  along  the  San 
Francisco  leaves  the  city,  and  runs  up  to  the  quinta.  This 
dotted  line  is  a  path  along  the  bank,  with  a  range  of  miserable 
huts,  like  the  negro  quarters  on  a  Southern  plantation,  extend- 
ing along  the  north  side  for  some  distance.  We  soon  turned 
out  of  this  toward  the  north,  and  then  rose  so  high  as  to  over- 


NEW  GRANADA. 

look  the  little  patch  of  fruit-trees,  inclosed  by  high  walls,  that, 
with  the  house  within,  was  once  a  magnificent  present  from  the 
Liberator  to  Pepe  Paris,  a  worthy  patriot  since  dead,  who 
erected  the  statue  of  Bolivar  that  adorns  the  Plaza.  It  is  said 
that  when  Pepe  was  feasting  there  one  day  with  Bolivar  and 
other  friends,  one  of  them  had  the  audacity  to  drink  to  Bolivar 
that  he  might  become  King  of  Colombia.  Pepe  gave  the  next 
toast.  It  was,  "  Bolivar :  if  he  ever  become  king,  may  his  blood 
flow  like  this  wine !"  dashing  it  with  the  word  to  the  floor.  All 
was  silent :  Bolivar  sprang  up,  caught  Paris  in  his  arms,  and 
embraced  him. 

Soon  from  steep  walking  we  came  to  climbing.  Here  the 
various  paths  became  contracted  into  one  that  went  up  in  zig- 
zags. It  was  amazingly  worn,  being  sunk  into  the  earth  in 
some  places  to  the  depth  of  many  feet  by  the  travel  of  three 
centuries  upon  the  same  spot.  Had  it  been  a  road  of  daily  use 
for  business,  it  would  not  have  surprised  me ;  but  that  a  road, 
traveled  only  for  pleasure  or  devotion  (often  for  both  at  once), 
should  have  become  so  deeply  worn  in  the  steep  face  of  a 
mountain,  seemed  incredible.  Some  of  these  cuts — here  called 
callejones — look  like  deep  ditches  worn  into  the  ground  by  the 
action  of  water,  so  that  you  can  not  see  out  as  you  pass  them. 

As  we  rose,  the  plain  opened  out  beneath  us,  and  the  city 
displayed  itself  as  in  a  map.  It  is  any  thing  but  a  beautiful 
sight,  for  you  see  but  little  except  tiled  roofs,  and  the  ugly 
towers  of  churches,  that  look  all  the  uglier  when  you  look  down 
upon  them  instead  of  seeing  them  from  below. 

Now  we  come  to  several  little  niches,  called  eremitas — her- 
mitages. They  have  nothing  in  them  but  a  little  cross  in  each. 
The  larger  ones  might  shelter  a  couple  of  persons  from  the 
weather,  and  here,  possibly,  other  objects  than  Our  Lady  may 
be  worshiped  sometimes. 

At  a  distance  of  ten  or  twelve  miles,  the  Chapel  of  Our  Lady 
of  Montserrate  appears  to  be  about  two  thirds  the  way  up  the 
hill,  while  from  the  city  beneath  it  seems  perched  on  the  high- 
est pinnacle.  Neither  view  is  correct :  there  is  land  adjoining 
the  chapel  50  or  100  feet  higher,  but  the  higher  tops  seen  over 
it  from  the  distant  plain  are  much  farther  oiF.  The  altitude  of 
the  church  is  little  more  than  1800  feet  above  the  city.  Ob- 


MONTSERKATE.  215 

servers  differ  as  to  whether  it  is  more  or  less  than  two  miles 
above  the  sea.     The  thermometer  stands  here  from  49°  to  52°. 

Arrived  at  the  top,  we  found  a  group  of  buildings,  consisting 
of  a  church  and  residences  for  priest  and  sacristan,  the  last  of 
whom  resides  there  with  a  disgusting  family  and  a  pack  of  very 
noisy  dogs.  The  key,  I  was  told,  had  been  carried  down  to 
the  city  that  morning  by  a  boy.  It  was  a  lie,  no  doubt.  Two 
sides  of  the  pile  could  be  seen  from  the  plain,  and  these  were 
beautifully  whitewashed.  All  around,  out-doors,  were  the  re- 
mains of  fires,  and  other  evidences  of  field-feasts.  Of  the 
brands  of  our  predecessors  we  made  a  reluctant  fire  to  boil  some 
water,  brought  from  a  spring  a  little  below,  for  our  chocolate. 
After  all,  it  cost  more  than  it  was  worth  in  precious  time,  for, 
though  the  air  was  rather  keen,  we  had  provided  against  it  by 
extra  dress. 

While  this  was  doing,  we  went  up  to  a  platform  with  a  para- 
pet around  it,  and  looked  off.  The  prospect  here  well  repays 
the  toil.  First,  there  is  the  city  beneath  your  feet.  You  could 
see  the  houses  and  all  their  courts,  the  rivers  with  their  few 
bridges,  the  convents  and  men  in  the  Plaza  dwarfed  to  insects. 
Beyond  lies  the  plain,  covered  in  spots  with  water,  which  has 
been  increasing  ever  since  the  rains  began.  Then  there  are 
hills  rising  like  islands,  and  the  irregular  coast-line  of  the  rim 
of  the  basin.  But  beyond,  my  eye  caught  an  object  which  is 
never  seen  without  interest.  It  was  a  peak  and  a  long  plain  at 
its  base.  Both  are  covered  with  perpetual  snow.  They  are  the 
Peak  of  Tolima  and  the  Paramo  of  Euiz.  They  lie  90  miles, 
air  line,  to  the  west,  five  days'  journey  beyond  the  Magdalena. 
The  clouds  soon  shut  out  the  sight,  and  I  have  never  seen  it 
since. 

I  dare  not  trust  myself  to  speak  of  the  plants  that  I  found 
here.  Some  I  saw  on  the  before-mentioned  trips,  and  some  even 
in  ascending  to  the  plain  of  Bogota.  Most  of  the  plants  I  speak 
of  at  this  altitude  are  scraggy  shrubs,  with  small  stiff  leaves. 
Few,  indeed,  are  as  high  as  my  head,  and  I  know  not  that  there 
was  an  annual  herb  among  the  whole. 

Smallest  leaves  of  all  have  the  Aragoas.  There  are  but  two 
species  in  the  world,  and  there  is  no  other  genus  much  like  them. 
Both  these  species  are  confined  to  these  heights  near  Bogota, 


216  NEW  GRANADA. 

one  being  common — A.  cupressina — and  the  other  very  rare,  so 
that  I  at  length  despaired  finding  it,  and  my  friends  here  had 
never  seen  it.  They  look  like  young  spruces  or  cedars  when 
out  of  flower.  The  flowers  are  small,  white,  and  anomalous. 
They  are  regular  and  four-parted,  but  are  referred  to  the  irregu- 
lar five-parted  Scrophulariate  family.* 

A  splendid  vine,  the  very  queen  of  the  composite  family,  is 
dedicated  to  the  honor  of  Mutis,  the  old  priest  who  correspond- 
ed with  Linnaeus,  who  came  from  Spain  somewhere  about  1760, 
was  for  a  long  time  in  pay  of  the  government  as  botanist,  orig- 
inated the  Observatory  in  Bogota,  and  died  there  llth  Septem- 
ber, 1808,  at  the  age  of  77.  Well  for  him  that  he  was  not  a 
younger  man,  and  living  in  1816,  for  the  Goth  Morillo  would 
have  shot  him  as  a  learned  man  had  he  been  true  to  his  coun- 
try. As  it  was,  he  only  sent  his  writings  to  be  buried  in  the 
archives  of  Madrid,  inaccessible  to  botanists  till  they  are  nearly 
useless.  Caldas  charges  him  of  withholding  information,  and 
even  of  purposely  leaving  his  writings  in  a  condition  to  be  of 
little  service  to  any  other  than  himself.  The  Mutisias  belong 
to  the  rare  Bilabiate  division  of  Composite  plants.  They  have 
long  heads  of  splendid  scarlet  blossoms  in  an  involucre,  that 
might  serve  for  a  model  of  a  porte-bouquet. 

The  Thibaudias  are  numerous  at  cold  altitudes.  One  I  saw 
here  with  an  eatable  but  rather  insipid  berry,  called  uva  cima- 
rrona — wild  grape.  It  is  an  Ericate  bush,  with  thick,  long  corol- 
las, that  look  as  if  carved  out  of  red  coral.  These  thick  flowers 
have  a  pleasant  sour  taste. 

Here,  too,  I  saw  the  characteristic  plant  of  the  paramos — the 
frailejon.  Various  species  of  Espeletia  besides  E.  Frailexon  are 
so  called.  They  have  yellow  composite  flowers,  like  elecam- 
pane, and  trunks  like  gigantic  mullein-stalks,  in  some  places  six 
feet  high  and  four  inches  in  diameter,  and  without  branches. 
The  frailejon  yields  a  stiff  kind  of  turpentine,  that  is  brought  to 
market  in  a  sort  of  bottle,  made  by  folding  the  leaves  of  the 
plant.  These  leaves  are  8  or  10  inches  long,  tomentose  and 
white  like  those  of  the  mullein.  They  serve  sometimes  to  save 

*  In  the  Nov.  Gen.  et  Spec,  of  Humboldt  and  Bonpland  there  is  a  plate  bear- 
ing the  name  of  A.  juniperina.  The  branch  is  identical  with  that  representing 
A.  cupressina,  but  the  anatomical  details  are  different  and  not  true. 


MOUNTAIN  CHAPEL.  217 

the  traveler  from  death  by  cold  when  he  is  caught  in  the  para- 
mo by  night  or  storm,  without  any  refuge  from  the  cold  except 
by  burying  himself  in  these  leaves.  Fire  is  not  thought  of. 
There  is  no  fuel. 

The  only  other  plant  I  shall  mention  is  the  chusquea,  a  grass 
that  might  be  regarded  almost  as  a  climber.  Its  hard  woody 
stem  is  brought  in  bundles  into  Bogota,  to  be  used  in  the  con- 
struction of  the  roofs  and  sides  of  cheap  houses.  It  is  the  Chus- 
quea scandens. 

We  entered  the  buildings  attached  to  the  church.  They 
seemed  a  convent  on  a  small  scale,  uninhabited,  indeed,  but  in 
good  order.  Not  so  the  kitchen.  It  seems  to  be  the  daily  and 
nightly  habitation  of  a  large  family,  human  and  canine.  The 
former  seemed  to  care  very  little  for  us,  but  the  latter  manifest- 
ed a  great  interest  in  our  legs,  but  evidently  were  afraid  of  the 
consequences  of  yielding  to  their  impulses.  In  the  church  there 
is  said  to  be  a  miracle-working  copy  of  a  miracle-working  pic- 
ture of  Our  Lady  of  Montserrate  in  Spain ;  but  this  could  work 
nothing  for  heretics,  of  course,  nor  for  Liberales,  who,  in  fact,  are 
little  better. 

The  kitchen  faces  the  north,  and  from  the  parapet  there  the 
ground  descends  rapidly  to  the  garden  and  the  spring,  in  a  little 
amphitheatre  scooped  in  the  mountain.  We  passed  round  west 
and  north  of  this.  On  a  little  plot  of  grass  near  the  kitchen 
the  family  were  spreading  out  a  large  supply  of  priestly  vest- 
ments— albas,  casullas,  capas  pluviales,  ornamentos,  parmentos, 
cingulas,  estolas,  frontales,  etc.,  etc.,  etc.  Now,  good  reader, 
do  not  look  for  these  things  in  the  glossary,  for  I  hardly  know 
them  one  from  another,  and  you  do  not  wish  to. 

We  walked  along  to  the  north,  nearly  to  the  head  of  the  Arch- 
bishop River.  First  we  rose  a  hill  higher  than  the  top  of  the 
church.  Then  descending,  we  walked  a  long  way  on  the  top  of 
the  ridge,  having  on  our  right  a  gentle  descent,  and  again  be- 
yond higher  mountains,  nearly  twice  as  high  in  reality  as  the 
place  where  we  are.  On  our  left  was  almost  a  precipice  extend- 
ing to  the  plain  beneath.  All  this  distance  we  met  scarce  a 
plant  that  grew  on  the  plain  beneath,  or  on  the  mountain's  base. 

Southward  of  the  church  the  ground  descends  gradually  for 
some  distance.  I  was  shown  a  spot  here  where  it  is  affirmed 


218  NEW  GRANADA. 

that  the  ground  is  warm.  I  think  the  word  ought  to  be  used 
with  some  qualification,  for  I  doubt  whether  a  thermometer 
buried  there  would  ever  rise  to  60°  before  the  final  conflagration. 
Imagination  works  wonders — indeed  it  works  most  of  the  won- 
ders that  I  have  yet  examined  here. 

I  saw  growing  here  a  gentian,  a  veritable  Gentiana,  five  inch- 
es high,  sometimes  blue,  and  sometimes  entirely  white.  And 
another  familiar  genus,  the  Lupinus,  I  found  represented  by  a 
huge  plant  as  high  as  my  head,  near  the  church  ;  but  I  am  for- 
getting my  promise  a  little  while  back.  Well,  I  will  just  men- 
tion one  more,  which  closely  resembles  our  common  house-leek 
or  live-forever.  I  suppose  it  to  be  Sedum  bicolor. 

A  little  southward  of  the  "warm  ground"  the  land  descends 
rapidly  toward  a  huge  gulf,  the  Boqueron,  through  which  rushes 
the  San  Francisco  River,  with  a  road  creeping  along  its  side. 
We  descended  to  a  peak,  called  the  Macaw's  Bill,  which  looks 
up  the  basin  of  the  San  Francisco,  a  space  of  moderately  hilly 
country,  dotted  with  cottages  and  small  fields  cleared  of  bushes. 

But  I  must  not  dismiss  it  so.  From  the  head  of  the  Boque- 
ron, which  might  easily  be- spanned  by  a  suspension  bridge  1000 
feet  above  the  river,  the  ground  rises  in  every  direction.  The 
west  side  of  this  amphitheatre  is  the  wall  through  which  the  San 
Francisco  breaks  at  the  Boqueron,  and  on  the  two  sides  of  which 
once  stood  the  chapels  of  Montserrate  and  Guadalupe.  The 
first  we  have  just  left ;  the  other,  which  stood  at  a  greater  ele- 
vation, is  a  pile  of  ruins  that  we  have  yet  to  visit.  The  eastern 
border  of  this  habitable  slope  is  the  paramo  of  Choachi.  We 
might  make  the  circuit  of  all  this  slope,  occupied  perhaps  by  50 
wood-selling  families  in  huts  and  hovels,  by  traveling  about  20 
miles,  without  descending  at  any  time  to  a  spot  as  low  as  where 
we  now  stand.  Our  track  would  be  nearly  a  circle. 

All  the  space  within  it  seems  at  first  to  be  a  forest,  into  which 
settlers  have  moved  for  the  first  time  only  a  month  ago,  and 
have  just  cleared  spots  large  enough  to  build  on.  But  it  would 
need  but  a  single  tree  to  dispel  the  illusion.  In  all  that  space 
there  is  not  perhaps  a  trunk  three  inches  in  diameter,  or  a  bough 
20  feet  above  the  ground.  All  is  bushes — stunted,  gnarled 
shrubs,  that  make  a  walk  there  a  terrible  monotony.  We  know 
no  English  name  for  any  useful  plant  that  will  grow  there,  ex- 


POOR  MOUNTAINEERS.  219 

cept  potatoes  and  barley.  Not  even  these  are  cultivated,  and 
how  and  why  people  live  there  is  an  inexplicable  mystery. 
With  every  desirable  climate  in  the  world  within  two  days' 
journey  of  them,  and  land  to  be  had  any  where  for  the  asking, 
why  do  they  live  here  ? 

As  I  must  give  a  reason,  I  will  venture  on  two.  These  people 
must  live  near  Bogota.  The  same  necessity  that  keeps  some 
20,000  wretches  in  New-York,  who  must  starve  every  winter, 
and  live  by  their  wits  all  summer,  because  they  can  not  endure 
the  terrible  solitudes  of  a  country  town,  compels  these  poor 
creatures  to  live  where  they  can  visit  Bogota  every  few  days. 
They  would  live  on  the  plain,  but  there  the  ground  is  all  taken 
up  by  large  proprietors,  who  can  grow  rich  by  raising  wheat 
or  cattle,  but  who  could  make  nothing  by  raising  so  cheap  and 
useless  product  as  'men.  These  weeds  of  the  animal  creation 
are  suffered  to  grow,  like  other  weeds,  where  the  ground  is  not 
susceptible  of  cultivation.  And  these  poor  people  are  indeed 
weeds — "  creation's  blot,  creation's  blank,"  not  figuring  either 
among  producers  or  consumers.  Had  they  not  immortal  souls, 
were  they  not  susceptible  of  religion,  education,  and  civilization, 
it  were  a  pity  some  measures  could  not  be  taken  to  exterminate 
them,  for  I  know  of  no  creature  in  the  animal  kingdom  that  en- 
joys less  and  suffers  more. 

The  other  reason  why  these  poor  creatures  do  not  migrate  to 
warmer  lands  is  that  they  dislike  high  thermometers  and  ba- 
rometers. An  atmospheric  pressure  of  30  inches  of  mercury  is 
intolerable  to  their  lungs.  They  can  not  persuade  themselves 
that  the  air  is  not  charged  with  some  deleterious  substance. 
It  seems  to  differ  from  pure  air  just  as  a  viscid  liquid  does  from 
water.  Neither  would  they  be  capable  of  enduring  the  heat 
and  light  of  a  New  England  summer  without  being  cared  for 
like  polar  bears.  I  would  not  attempt  to  summer  one  of  them 
iu  New- York  without  the  aid  of  darkened  rooms  and  ice-houses. 

From  the  Macaw's  Bill  we  climbed  up  and  returned  by  the 
road  we  came,  for  descent  here  was  out  of  the  question.  In- 
deed, we  hardly  dared  throw  stones  into  the  Boqueron  lest  they 
should  fall  on  the  head  of  some  luckless  traveler  in  the  road 
beneath,  where  they  seemed  to  be  moving  like  ants.  In  fact, 
there  was  no  danger,  for  our  projectiles,  urged  horizontally  with 


220  NEW  GRANADA. 

our  utmost  force,  seemed  to  turn  like  a  boomerang,  and  to  strike 
almost  under  our  feet. 

Never  had  I  been  so  laden  with  floral  treasures  as  when  I 
returned  to  Bogota.  I  had  picked  a  small-flowered  Alstrceme- 
ria,  the  vine  of  which  had  grown  into  a  loop,  through  which  I 
put  my  arm.  In  this  way  it  seemed  as  if  dropping  out  of  my 
mammoth  bouquet.  As  I  was  passing  down  by  San  Juan  de 
Dios,  a  little  girl  thought  she  had  better  secure  the  prize  that 
otherwise  must  fall  to  the  ground,  and  laid  hold  of  it  from  be- 
hind, not  thinking  that  I  should  feel  it  as  it  took  leave  of  me. 
I  turned  round,  and  evidently  surprised  her  by  the  specimen  I 
gave  her  of  my  attainments  in  Castilian,  for  she  fled  precipi- 
tately. 

I  made  an  attempt  with  Senor  Triana  afterward  to  pass  the 
Boqueron  on  horseback.  Passing  up  out  of  town,  we  left  Boli- 
var's country-seat  (d)  and  the  river  (e)  on  the  left,  and  on  the 
right  two  grist-mills,  an  extinct  paper-mill,  and  a  manufactory 
of  crude  quinine  (g).  Our  road  rose  rapidly  till  the  mountain 
shut  us  in,  and  the  Church  of  Montserrate,  high  on  our  left, 
disappeared  from  view.  Patches  of  the  cliffs  were  red  with  Be- 
gonias unexcelled  by  any  ever  seen  by  Hogg  or  Dunlap.  The 
Odontoglossum,  with  its  bushel  of  yellow  orchid  flowers,  here 
and  there  perched  itself  just  out  of  human  reach.  At  length 
came  a  pass  too  narrow  for  a  path,  and  we  had  to  climb  a  point 
of  rock  on  the  south  side.  Such  a  getting  up  stairs  on  back 
of  horse  or  mule  I  never  did  see.  At  length  my  friend's  horse 
came  to  flat  rebellion,  and  turned  round  as  if  to  fall  upon  my 
head.  My  horse  revolted  also.  Perhaps  their  heads  were  dizzy. 
At  length  I  passed  the  recusant,  who  proceeded  to  scramble  up 
to  the  top. 

No  sooner  were  we  up  than  again  we  had  to  descend.  When 
the  water  is  not  very  high  indeed,  the  poor  market-people  follow 
the  stream  to  avoid  this  cruel  ascent  and  descent  over  stairs 
built  of  round  stones,  forever  wet. 

A  curious  bush  that  we  found  in  fruit  here  cost  me  immense 
trouble.  At  first  I  could  find  only  fruit,  a  globe  of  the  size  of 
a  plum,  with  a  pair  of  green  horns.  Long  after  I  found  the  pis- 
tillate flowers,  but  as  it  is  dioecious,  I  never  could  find  the  other 
sex.  It  proves  to  be  Styloceras  laurifolium,  which  is  badly 


SCARCITY  OF  FUEL.  221 

represented  as  to  its  fruit  in  Humboldt  and  Bonpland's  Ifbv. 
Gen. 

We  were  now  in  the  wildest  part  of  the  gulf.  Nothing  was 
visible  but  rock  and  sky,  with  the  brawling  stream  rushing 
through  the  chasm.  Here  it  began  to  rain.  My  health  would 
not  permit  me  to  be  wet  with  impunity,  and  we  turned  and  re- 
treated. 

Against  the  rock  where  we  turned  I  saw  a  poor  woman  lean- 
ing to  rest.  She  had  in  her  hand  a  long  peon's  staff,  and  on 
her  shoulders  a  bundle,  nearly  as  large  as  herself,  composed  of 
small  sticks.  This  is  a  common  sight.  In  this  way  Bogota 
is  supplied  with  fuel.  Little  coal  is  used.  All  the  wood  is 
sold  in  bundles  (not  weighed,  however,  as  in  Paris),  whether 
brought  on  backs  of  women  or  mules,  or  in  carts.  A  little  be- 
low I  met  a  little  girl,  not  twelve  years  old,  loaded  in  this  way. 
Her  scant  dress,  her  naked  feet,  and  the  cold,  tempted  me  to 
pay  her  a  dime  for  her  load  and  throw  it  into  the  river.  She 
would  only  have  fished  it  out  to  sell  again.  To  ameliorate  the 
condition  of  the  poor  needs  wisdom  more  than  money. 

How  long  has  this  vicinity  been  woodless?  Probably  the 
Indians  stripped  it  early  of  its  wood,  and  it  has  never  had  a 
chance  to  grow  again  in  all  the  centuries  since.  In  my  opin- 
ion, the  slopes  toward  the  plain  might  be  nearly  adequate  to 
supply  the  demand  for  wood  and  timber,  could  it  only  have  a 
chance  to  grow.  I  do  not  see  that  the  land  here  has  owners, 
nor  would  any  one  be  enriched  by  it  in  this  generation  if  the 
timber  were  preserved.  And  this  would  be  impossible  without 
sentinels  night  and  day. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark  that,  wherever  I  have  passed  the  bound- 
ary of  the  plain,  all  the  slopes  toward  it  have  been  stripped  of 
trees ;  but  soon  after  you  begin  to  descend  from  it,  and  particu- 
larly after  the  first  steep  descent,  the  country  is  well  wooded. 
The  hills  there  have  been  stripped  of  wood  to  meet  the  demands 
of  the  Sabana :  this  may  always  have  been  prairie. 


222  NEW  GRANADA. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

THE   PRISON,  THE   HOSPITAL,  THE  GRAVE. 

Gnadalupe. — Discomfited  Saint. — Boqueron  and  bathing  Girls. — Miracle-work- 
ing Image. — Fuel-girl  and  Babe. — Powder-mill  and  Magazine. — Soldiers. — 
Cemeteries. — Day  of  Mourning. — Potter's-fields.  —  Gallinazo. — Hospital.  — 
Doctors  and  Apothecaries. — Provincial  Prison. 

MY  kind  friend,  Dr.  Pacho,  who  showed  me  where  to  swim, 
but  not  when  to  swim,  proposed  one  day,  as  I  was  recovering 
from  my  sickness,  to  which  I  have  alluded  already,  that  we 
should  make  a  short  excursion  the  next  day.  Though  still 
somewhat  weak,  I  consented. 

I  breakfasted  early,  and  we  were  soon  above  the  city,  at  a 
place  called  Agua  Nueva,  where  a  dotted  line  is  seen  on  the 
Plan,  passing  from  the  east  end  of  the  street  that  runs  up  past 
the  Cathedral :  this  is  now  a  good  road  leading  to  the  Boque- 
ron. This  road  we  crossed,  and  I  soon  found  we  were  rising 
liigher  and  higher,  directly  in  the  rear  of  the  north  part  of  the 
city,  and  just  south  of  the  Boqueron. 

We  came  to  the  foundations  of  a  church  on  a  shoulder  of  the 
hill.  The  origin  is  said  to  be  in  the  fact  that,  when  the  fane 
above  was  ruined  by  an  earthquake,  its  sacred  image  was  thrown 
clown  here,  many  hundred  feet  below,  but  that  the  next  night  it 
returned  to  the  ruins  above.  They  then  attempted  to  rebuild 
the  chapel  down  here,  but  the  design  fell  through,  and  the  poor 
image  was  at  length  compelled  to  content  itself  with  quarters  in 
the  Church  of  San  Juan  de  Dios  in  the  city  below,  from  whence 
it  has  not  since  tried  to  escape. 

Up  went  the  tortuous  ascent,  but  in  many  places  the  path 
was  sunk  into  deep  callejones.  We  still  ascended  till  we  could 
see  over  Montserrate — could  see  the  horizon  beyond — nay,  even 
look  down  on  the  plain  as  it  stretched  off  to  the  north  of  it.  We 
came  at  length  to  the  ruins  of  the  upper  church,  in  its  day  more 
splendid  than  that  of  Montserrate.  This  is  the  chapel  of  Our 
Lady  of  Guadalupe. 


GUADALUPE.  223 

Mounting  these  walls,  I  found  myself  higher  than  I  ever  had 
been  before — 11,039  feet.  I  placed  Mount  Washington,  in  my 
imagination,  with  its  foot  at  the  level  of  the  sea  beneath  me,  and 
found  its  top  so  low  as  scarce  to  be  discernible. 

From  this  point  my  friend,  who  never  lost  an  opportunity  of 
getting  into  trouble,  suggested  a  descent  toward  the  northeast, 
from  which  we  could  reach  the  city  by  passing  through  the  Bo- 
queron.  In  fact,  he  thought  this  the  easiest  way  to  return 
home.  We  were  soon  committed,  and  too  far  down  to  retreat. 
The  whole  side  was  densely  covered  with  bushes,  and  without  a 
path.  But  gravity  will  do  wonders  when  one  trusts  himself  to 
it,  and,  strange  to  say,  we  reached  the  bottom,  by  good  fortune 
and  good  management,  bringing  our  clothes  with  us.  Another 
task  remained:  it  was  to  pass  the  Boqueron  without  wetting 
my  feet,  as  at  this  time,  when  I  was  not  acclimated,  such  a 
course  would  have  inevitably  brought  on  a  relapse.  The  wild 
magnificence  of  the  scene  is  unsurpassed  by  any  thing  I  recol- 
lect. For  more  than  a  mile  the  walls  were  too  steep  to  scale, 
and  the  bottom  too  narrow  for  a  wagon-road. 

Through  this  narrow  gorge  much  of  the  supplies  of  Bogota 
pass  on  the  shoulders  of  men  and  women  and  the  backs  of 
oxen.  Wood,  charcoal,  wheat,  fowls,  turpentine  of  frailejon  in 
bottles  made  of  leaves,  and  even  plantains  from  the  warmer  re- 
gions beyond  the  mountains,  come  pouring  down  at  all  hours  of 
the  day,  and  particularly  early  Friday  morning. 

Narrowly  escaping  a  complete  ducking  in  my  efforts  to  save 
my  feet,  I  had  crossed  and  recrossed  the  stream  till  but  one  more 
crossing  remained  at  the  outlet  of  the  Boqueron.  Here  a  new 
obstacle  met  me.  To  pass  where  the  road  did  was  clearly  im- 
possible; above  was  unscalable  rock.  Below  was  a  narrow 
path  close  beside  the  water,  where  a  group  of  bathing  girls  held 
possession.  The  whiteness  of  their  skin  showed  them  of  no 
plebeian  caste ;  indeed,  I  learned  they  were  headed  by  a  school- 
mistress. How  these  naiads  lived  in  the  freezing  current,  where 
I  dared  not  dip  my  foot,  was  to  me  a  mystery ;  but  there  they 
were.  I  must  get  round  them  as  best  I  could.  I  did  so, 
and  at  length  below  passed  the  stream,  and  gained  the  mouth 
of  the  Boqueron.  Now  came  the  rain.  It  rains  every  after- 
noon in  the  middle  of  the  rainy  season,  but  I  was  slow  to  find 


224  NEW  GRANADA. 

it  out,  and  my  kind  friends  generally  managed  to  be  caught 
in  it. 

We  took  refuge  in  a  venta.  Passing  through  a  little  tienda, 
where  market-people  are  apt  to  leave  too  much  money  and  take 
too  much  chicha,  we  entered  a  desolate,  empty  sala,  and  seated 
ourselves  on  the  cold  poyo  of  adobe — a  brick  bench  running 
around  the  room.  Here  we  watched  to  see  it  rain.  Across 
the  patio  were  two  other  mean  mud  huts.  The  posts  of  the 
corredor  were  of  the  rough,  curious  stems  of  tree-ferns  —  palo 
bobo. 

I  saw  here  a  stupendous  earth-worm  —  yes,  an  angle-worm, 
almost  big  enough  to  "  bob  for  whale"  with.  But  there  is  no 
need  of  hyperbole ;  it  was  about  two  thirds  of  an  inch  in  diam- 
eter, and  eight  or  ten  inches  long. 

About  3  the  rain  ceased,  and  the  doctor,  finding  I  had  had 
as  much  exercise  and  fasting  as  was  good  for  a  convalescent, 
agreed  with  me  that  it  might  be  time  to  get  home  to  our  din- 
ners. 

I  made  a  somewhat  similar  expedition  a  few  days  after,  only 
I  left  the  height  of  Guadalupe  at  my  left.  I  passed  first,  on  the 
base  of  the  mountain,  a  church  called  Egypt  (p  on  the  Plan), 
whether  from  darkness  or  bondage,  or  both,  I  know  not,  but  in 
either  sense  more  churches  than  one  might  with  propriety  bear 
the  name.  Leaving  the  outskirts  of  the  city  behind  me,  by  ris- 
ing still  higher  we  reach  the  little  Church  of  La  Peria  —  of  Our 
Lady  of  the  Cliff — with  its  miraculous  image  of  Joseph,  Mary, 
the  infant  Savior,  and  an  angel  bearing  the  custodia,  in  which 
they  keep  the  consecrated  wafer  or  hostia.  This  is  the  most 
venerated  image  I  have  ever  seen.  It  was  found  by  an  Indian 
on  an  almost  inaccessible  peak  above,  carved  out  in  the  living 
rock,  from  which  its  base  was  not  detached.  With  immense 
labor  the  piece  was  detached,  lowered  with  ropes  from  its  native 
crag,  and  here  a  temple  was  built  for  it.  They  covered  the  di- 
vine workmanship  all  over  with  paint,  put  showy  dresses  on  the 
figures,  and  put  the  group  in  the  camarin,  where  it  contin- 
ues to  work  miracles,  as  are  attested  by  wax  models  of  arms, 
legs,  eyes,  etc.,  and  pictures  of  various  catastrophes,  out  of 
which  those  who  called  on  La  Senora  de  la  Peria  for  help  came 
out  ah"  ve. 


MIEACLES. 


225 


VOTIVE    OFFERINGS. 


We  borrow  the  annexed  diagram 
to  show  how  the  wax  figures  would 
look  were  they  not  crowded  together, 
covering  each  other ;  and  the  style  of 
execution  is  fairly  emulated  by  the 
engraver.  The  pictures  were  in  the 
same  style,  or  poorer,  and  exhibited 
a  great  variety  of  haps  and  mishaps. 
One  lady,  for  instance,  was  riding  up 
to  Montserrate,  and  her  horse  turned 
a  somerset  down  the  bank  with  her. 
Through  the  intervention  of  this  stone 
image,  she  was  not  killed.  Another  was  crossing  an  exposed 
place  during  a  bull-feast  in  the  Plazuela  of  San  Victorino.  The 
bull  tumbled  her  over,  and  a  comical  sight  she  was,  according 
to  the  picture ;  but,  thanks  to  La  Peiia,  she  lived  through  it. 

From  here  our  course  was  southwest.  A  steep  ascent,  a 
mountain  swamp,  and  a  well-worn  path  over  the  ridge  brought 
us  in  sight  of  two  miserable  little  fields,  and  a  hut  covered  with 
grass.  Here  we  saw  a  man,  his  wife,  and  two  little  children 
preparing  loads  of  wood  for  the  city.  A  descent  directly  south 
brought  us  to  a  road,  paved  in  some  places,  running  along  the 
banks  of  the  Fucha.  I  turned  and  went  from  the  city  on  this 
road. 

As  I  was  going  up  a  steep  pitch,  I  met  a  sight  which  I  shall 
not  soon  forget.  It  was  a  young  girl,  apparently  fifteen,  but 
doubtless  older.  She  had  on  her  back  a  large  load  of  wood,  but 
was  descending  the  steep  road  with  a  quick,  elastic  step :  in 
her  right  hand  was  the  long  staff  they  always  carry,  and  on  her 
left  arm  her  babe,  unconsciously  drawing  its  nourishment  from 
the  living  fountain.  Ah,  woman,  how  varied  but  universal  are 
thy  wrongs !  The  father  of  this  innocent  may  have  been  some 
country  priest,  living  in  coarse  luxury,  with  nothing  to  tax  the 
energies  of  his  mind — neither  cares,  responsibilities,  nor  duties 
beyond  the  performance  of  prescribed  ceremonies  at  prescribed 
times — nothing,  in  short,  to  do  but  "to  draw  nutrition,  propa- 
gate, and  rot."  She,  living  possibly  in  a  mud  hut,  seven  feet 
long,  six  feet  wide,  and  five  feet  from  the  eaves  to  the  ground, 
contrives  to  eke  out  a  subsistence  for  herself  and  babe  by  pick- 


226  NEW  GRANADA. 

ing  up  a  load  of  sticks  near  her  kennel,  carrying  them  and  her 
babe  from  seven  to  twelve  miles,  and  selling  her  load  for  three 
half  dimes. 

Near  here  I  gathered  the  fruit  of  a  curious  shrub,  the  Coriaria. 
The  flowers  had  been  very  small — scarcely  noticeable,  indeed, 
except  for  their  number,  and  for  apparently  growing  on  the 
leaves ;  but  when  the  time  came  for  it  to  go  out  of  flower,  the 
petals,  instead  of  falling,  took  to  growing.  They  became  so 
distended  with  bright  red  juice  as  to  appear  almost  black,  and 
to  have  crowded  each  other  out  of  shape,  and  into  angular 
masses,  hiding  entirely  the  little  capsule,  and  appearing  like  a 
berry.  I  found  here,  too,  for  the  first  time  in  South  America,  a 
mistletoe  growing  on  a  bush. 

The  road  from  here  to  Bogota  does  not  closely  follow  the 
River  Fucha,  but  rises  over  a  shoulder  of  the  mountain  at  a 
considerable  height,  while  the  river  enters  the  plain  through  a 
gorge.  Here  I  found  a  gigantic  figure  painted  on  a  sloping 
rock  in  the  river,  as  if  wading  across  it,  with  a  child  on  his 
shoulders,  and  using  a  palm  for  a  staff.  It  was  Saint  Christo- 
pher (Christ-bearer),  of  whose  history,  unfortunately,  I  know  no 
more  than  is  shown  by  the  etymology  of  his  name.  I  wonder 
if  his  mother  gave  him  that  name  in  infancy,  and  if,  when 
grown  to  more  than  man's  stature,  he  had  the  honor  to  carry 
once  or  repeatedly  the  infant  Savior  on  his  shoulders.  But  it 
is  useless  to  ask. 

Just  below  here  I  took  my  first  bath  in  the  chilly  climate  of 
Bogota.  I  was  in  the  water  but  an  instant,  and  "  bathed  like  a 
cat,"  Dr.  Bay  on  said ;  but  the  dip  cost  me  that  sickness  of  a 
fortnight.  How  the  "hard  inhabitant"  can  enjoy  himself  in 
the  wintry  stream — how  even  little  children  are,  as  I  have  seen 
them,  copiously  and  deliberately  bathed,  is  to  me  amazing. 

My  visits  to  the  plains  have  been  fewer  and  less  interesting. 
One  was  to  a  spot  a  little  below  this.  We  passed  through 
fields  with  walls  of  unburnt  brick  and  roof  of  tile — the  gate- 
ways also  roofed.  A  more  hateful  fence  to  the  hunter  or  the 
botanist  can  not  be  found.  He  will  not  think  of  scaling  it,  and, 
perhaps,  when  he  needs  a  gate,  none  is  to  be  found.  We  pass- 
ed the  southern  borders  of  the  city,  and  came  to  a  mill,  where 
wheat  is  bought  and  converted  into  a  flour  equal  to  our  second 


SOLDIERS.  227 

or  third  rate.  As  a  tropical  voyage  damages  our  superfine 
flour,  it  does  not  shame  theirs  when  it  gets  here. 

On  the  same  canal  which  comes  from  the  Fucha  stood  the 
national  powder-mill :  government  has  since  abandoned  it,  and 
the  Serreria  is  to  be  sold.  Examined  from  an  eminence,  it  ap- 
peared to  be  an  orderly,  well-conducted  establishment,  but  I  did 
not  enter  it. 

On  the  very  banks  of  the  Fucha  stands  the  magazine,  under 
a  guard  of  soldiers.  It  is  a  solitary  building,  with  a  piazza,  sur- 
rounded by  a  high  wall,  part  of  which  has  been  carried  away  by 
the  floods.  The  soldiers  were  asleep,  and  I  had  entered  the  in- 
closure  before  I  knew  it  was  guarded.  In  the  piazza  hung  a 
soldier's  babe  in  a  hammock,  and  near  stood  their  guns.  Their 
cooking  was  done  by  building  a  fire  in  the  piazza  against  the 
walls  of  the  magazine.  We  found  the  mother  of  the  babe  near 
the  desolate  concern. 

A  little  way  from  here  I  saw  a  body  of  troops  washing  clothes 
in  the  river  within  a  line  of  sentinels.  They  had  a  few  women 
engaged  with  them.  The  fewness  surprised  me,  for  when  an 
army  is  on  march  there  are  more  women  than  men.  I  have 
been  repeatedly  assured  of  this,  and  that  the  commanders  expe- 
dite their  march,  and  aid  them  across  the  rivers  with  the  great- 
est attention.  Soldiers  here  are  smaller  than  other  people.  I 
am  not  tall,  l?ut  I  can  look  over  the  heads  of  a  long  line  of 
troops,  and  see  the  top  of  every  cap.  I  was  first  struck  with  the 
diminutive  stature  of  the  natives  in  a  dense  crowd  in  a  church. 
It  was  new  to  me,  who  had  been  so  often  buried  in  crowds,  to 
find  my  head  projecting  over  the  upper  surface  of  one.  I  have 
sometimes  been  mortified  by  the  rowdy  conduct  of  the  offscour- 
ing  of  the  States  in  Spanish  countries ;  but  when  I  see  such 
troops,  I  do  not  wonder  they  are  tempted  to  pitch  into  them, 
just  for  a  little  fun.  One  of  the  officers  I  saw  was  of  unmix- 
ed African  blood. 

I  beg  leave  to  introduce  to  the  reader  two  specimens  of  this 
unfortunate  and  not  very  reputable  class.  The  taller  of  the  two 
is  one  of  the  President's  Lancers,  and  the  other  one  of  the  infant- 
ry. The  dress  of  both  resembles  that  of  Northern  troops,  ex- 
cept that  the  feet  are  partially  covered  with  alpargates,  figured 
and  described  on  page  236.  Imagine  the  taller  of  these  rather 


228 


NEW  GRANADA. 


FOOT-SOLDIER    AND   LANCER. 


short,  and  no  more  impudent  than  a  cavalry  soldier  is  apt  to  be : 
might  not  some  of  the  chivalrous  sons  of  the  Union  be  tempted 
to  make  him  "know  his  place?" 

The  country  around  the  Fucha  is  not  exactly  flat,  but  inter- 
mediate between  plain  and  mountain.  All  west  of  here  is  en- 
tirely level,  and  at  this  season  of  the  year  much  of  the  ground 
is  covered  with  water.  It  differs  from  Western  prairies  in  that 
they  have  depressed  edges,  the  boundaries  being  streams  at  a 
much  lower  level.  Here  the  boundaries  are  hills,  and  the 
stream  in  the  interior  is  at  the  surface  of  the  plain.  In  both, 
the  centre  is  apt  to  be  wettest. 

In  the  plain  west  of  the  northern  end  of  the  city  is  the 
principal  cemetery  (a),  the  pride  of  Bogota.  It  is  an  ellipse  of 
about  an  acre,  surrounded  by  a  high  wall,  with  a  chapel  at  the 


CEMETERY  OF  BOGOTA.  229 

farther  end.  Thus  much  I  could  see  from  the  mountains.  My 
visit  there  happened  to  be  just  after  All  Saints,  2d  November, 
the  season  when,  in  several  successive  Mondays,  they  do  up  the 
mourning  for  the  year.  I  passed  and  met  numerous  groups  of 
mourners,  gayly  laughing  and  chatting  as  they  tripped  to  or 
from  the  house  appointed  for  all  the  living. 

The  theory  of  rural  cemeteries  is  not  understood  in  New 
Granada.  Romantic  situations  are  not  sought,  and  great  ex- 
tent is  not  desired.  It  may  be  desirable  that  some  monuments 
be  perpetuated,  but  the  bones  themselves  are  not  a  sacred  de- 
posit, so  it  matters  not  how  full  the  ground  may  be  while  there 
is  room  on  the  surface.  Hence  the  Granadan  cemetery  or  Pan- 
teon  is  condensed,  and  most  of  the  bodies  are  placed  in  the 
oven-like  bovedas.  The  wall  of  the  Cemetery  of  Bogota  is 
made  up  of  bovedas.  These  "  narrow  houses"  are  placed  side 
by  side,  in  three  or  four  tiers,  extending  around  the  vast  ellipse, 
except  that  the  space  opposite  the  entrance  is  occupied  by  a 
chapel,  without  which  a  cemetery  is  not  complete.  The  roof 
that  covers  the  bovedas  extends  over  a  walk  before  them,  where 
the  visitor  is  protected  from  the  weather,  as  he  contemplates 
paintings  and  inscriptions,  on  tin  plate,  in  water-colors  or  oil, 
or  chiseled  in  marble,  and  beautiful  rose-colored  fine  sandstone 
that  would  never  bear  frost.  Many  remain  as  they  were  left 
when  the  aperture  was  closed  on  the  inhabitant,  and  the  name 
and  date  were  written  in  the  fresh  mortar  with  a  stick. 

A  series  of  masses  were  going  on,  with  the  humane  inten- 
tion of  rescuing  the  deceased  from  an  unpleasant  situation,  in 
which  some  of  them  must  now  have  been  for  long  months. 
While  the  chapel  was  full  of  worshipers,  another  group  were  go- 
ing from  grave  to  grave,  with  one  or  two  priests,  singing  a  little, 
and  sprinkling  a  little  water  on  each  grave.  The  price  of  a  bo- 
veda  is  $8,  which  gives  a  right  for  ten  years,  when  the  bones  are 
drawn  forth  without  farther  expense  to  either  the  purses  .or  the 
feelings  of  the  survivors.  A  grave  in  the  ground  is  cheaper,  and 
the  body  is  left  till  the  ground  is  wanted  again.  A  perpetual 
right  in  the  ground  can  be  secured,  but  not  in  a  boveda. 

I  had  left  the  ground,  when  I  met  a  bier  on  the  shoulders  of 
four  men,  who  were  walking  at  a  brisk  pace,  and  shaking  from 
side  to  side  a  body  of  which  I  could  see  the  clasped  hands  and 


230  NEW  GBANADA. 

naked  face.  The  body  was  that  of  an  aged  female,  dressed  in 
white  flannel.  Arrived  at  the  grave,  it  was  full  of  water.  Here 
was  a  pause :  some  were  for  thrusting  the  body  down  into  the 
water,  others  for  dipping  it  out ;  but  some  men  who  were  digging 
an  adjoining  grave  gave  it  up  to  the  necessities  of  the  case,  and 
awkwardly,  and  with  offensive  exposure  of  the  person,  the  body 
was  laid  in  it.  Then  a  boy  caught  up  a  huge  lump  of  mud 
and  pitched  it  down.  It  struck  the  body  with  a  sullen  sound, 
made  the  whole  corpse  quiver,  tore  aside  part  of  the  clothes, 
and  disclosed  the  face  and  one  little  hand  of  a  babe  a  few  months 
old  that  had  been  concealed  there !  I  was  horrified,  but  stood 
my  ground.  Clod  after  clod  fell  on  their  naked  faces,  until,  lit- 
tle by  little,  the  shocking  scene  passed  from  view. 

While  these  bodies  were  being  buried  like  those  of  brutes,  a 
dozen  priests  were  within  the  consecrated  grounds,  but  came  not 
near  the  scene.  I  turned  away  sick  at  heart,  but  with  a  stron- 
ger desire  to  live  to  reach  my  native  land  than  ever  I  felt  before. 

The  burial-place  of  the  poor  is  down  in  the  damp  plain  west 
of  the  city.  The  Bogotanos  hoped  I  should  not  see  it,  for  it  is 
truly  a  horrible  place.  The  fence  leading  to  it  was  of  wood — 
sticks  tied  to  poles  with  thongs  of  raw  hide ;  but  the  fence  of 
the  cemetery  was  of  tapias  and  tile.  Within  were  bones  scat- 
tered over  the  ground,  and  even  a  skull  or  two,  and  that  un- 
clean bird,  the  gallinazo  or  chulo  (Vultur  Jota),  nearly  allied  to 
our  turkey-buzzard,  was  perched  on  the  wall,  desiring  to  defile 
his  beak  with  the  flesh  of  Christians,  which  I  hope  he  could  not 
reach,  though  he  could  smell  it.  This  creature  usually  finds  its 
upper  limit  before  reaching  the  height  of  this  plain,  but  Bogota 
seems  to  be  an  exception,  as  it  is  warm  considering  its  altitude. 
We  see  large  numbers  of  them  walking  over  the  waste  places, 
seeking  food,  or  opening  out  their  sooty  wings  on  a  roof,  where 
their  peculiar  position  leads  people  to  say  that  they  are  praying 
in  cross,  as  they  do  at  La  Tercera.  The  king  of  the  vultures, 
rey  de  los  gallinazos — Vultur  papa,  the  Vulture  pope — is  a  dif- 
ferent bird,  and  not  gregarious,  like  the  gallinazo.  When  he 
comes  to  their  feast,  they,  either  from  respect,  or  possibly  from 
mere  prudence,  leave  the  whole  to  him  till  his  majesty  pleases  to 
eat  no  more.  On  the  whole,  I  do  not  think  the  gallinazo,  though 
a  graceless  loafer,  is  so  uncleanly  as  our  turkey-buzzard — Vul- 


HOSPITAL.  231 

tor  Aura — whose  every  feather  disgusts,  and  when  he  has  gorged 
so  that  he  can  not  escape,  is  not  ashamed  to  spew  out  his  ob- 
scene repast  on  his  captor. 

Half  way  up  to  the  ledge  above  the  city,  near  a  brick-kiln, 
where  they  burn  their  bricks  with  brush  smaller  than  hazel- 
bushes,  is  a  place  where  they  bury  suicides,  and  sometimes,  it  is 
said,  malefactors.  They  are  buried  like  beasts,  and  their  mem- 
ory perishes  with  them.  Still,  the  good  woman,  whose  rancho 
stands  near  the  spot,  dares  not  venture  out-doors  at  night,  as  if 
the  miserable  walls  that  can  not  keep  out  the  air  could  protect 
her  from  ghosts.  I  will  add,  now  that  my  theme  has  taken  so 
grave  a  turn,  that  the  use  of  coffins  is  a  new  and  growing  prac- 
tice here,  but  as  yet  they  are  very  expensive.  The  poor  arc 
carried  to  their  last  resort  by  four  prisoners  from  the  Presidio, 
attended  by  soldiers  with  loaded  muskets.  The  introduction  of 
bovedas  would,  I  think,  be  a  benefit  to  our  own  cemeteries. 

From  the  grave  to  the  doctor  is  to  go  back  but  a  single  step, 
and  yet  I  mean  no  disrespect  to  the  profession,  or  to  Dr.  Meri- 
zalde,  to  make  it  and  him  the  subject  of  my  next  remarks.  A 
more  estimable  or  modest  man  I  do  not  know  than  this  pious 
and  venerable  physician.  His  library  is  to  me  the  most  inter- 
esting private  library  I  have  seen  in  this  country,  and  it  is  wor- 
thy of  a  more  extended  notice  than  I  can  give  of  it.  It  contains 
many  very  rare  books,  some  of  which  have  here  been  reposing 
for  two  centuries,  while  the  other  copies  of  them  have  been  ex- 
posed to  various  casualties  in  Europe — have  been  flooded  over 
and  lost  among  the  offspring  of  a  prolific  press,  or  worn  out  by 
too  much  use.  To  such  dangers  a  book  is  no  longer  exposed 
when  it  has  found  a  refuge  here ;  and  I  know  of  no  more  prom- 
ising a  field  for  a  hunter  of  rare  books  than  in  the  old  libraries 
of  New  Granada. 

Dr.  Merizalde  is  the  principal  physician  of  the  Hospital.  I 
met  him  there  once  at  the  early  hour  which  he  devotes  to  this  la- 
bor of  love.  The  good  old  man  had  quite  a  number  of  students 
in  his  train,  and  went  from  bed  to  bed  with  the  tenderness  of  a 
father.  I  was  surprised  at  the  number  of  patients  I  saw  with 
a  cake  in  their  hand,  but  at  length  I  noticed  on  the  doctor's  arm 
a  blue  cotton  handkerchief,  tied  at  the  four  corners,  that  must 
have  held  near  a  peck  at  first,  from  which  they  had  been  des> 


232  NEW  GRANADA. 

terously  transferred  to  the  beds  of  patients  without  attracting 
any  notice. 

The  Hospital  is  an  old  convent  of  the  Hospital  Brethren  of  St. 
John-of-God — San  Juan  de  Dios.  It  was  put  into  their  hands 
at  its  erection  as  the  best  thing  that  then  could  be  done ;  but 
the  monastic  history  of  Bogota  has  been  terrible.  The  only  or- 
der ever  here  that  was  not  a  humbug  and  a  scandal  was  the 
Jesuits.  Say  what  we  will  of  them  now,  I  can  not  doubt  that 
they  were  faithful  at  that  time,  and  the  first  banishment  of  them 
from  this  country  was  an  unwise  and  cruel  step,  dictated  by  any 
thing  else  than  a  regard  for  religion.  But  the  monks  of  San 
Juan  de  Dios  settled  the  question  of  how  few  patients  they  could 
take  in,  and  still  enjoy  their  spacious  convent  and  fat  larder. 
Government  found  itself  at  length  compelled  to  suppress  the  or- 
der, and  put  the  Hospital  under  charge  of  the  gobernacion  of  the 
province.  I  think,  however,  it  receives  nothing  from  the  pro- 
vincial treasury. 

The  Hospital  is  not  in  good  order :  the  rooms  are  old,  the 
bricks  of  the  floor  are  traversed  by  several  crevices  in  each,  that 
form  so  many  secure  depositories  of  dirt,  some  of  which  may 
perhaps  date  from  the  last  century.  Every  thing  seemed  to 
have  been  badly  contrived,  and  needed  a  thorough  reform.  This 
would  require  funds  which  there  is  no  probability  of  their  soon 
receiving.  The  kitchen  was  dirty  and  inefficient,  without  any 
large  vessels  for  wholesale  cookery,  or  any  labor-saving  arrange- 
ments. It  seemed  as  if  the  cooking  for  each  separate  patient 
may  have  been  carried  on  independently  of  the  others,  and  every 
thing  looked  more  as  if  the  whole  affair  was  there  only  tempo- 
rarily. So,  too,  of  the  dispensatory :  it  was  in  the  most  shock- 
ing condition,  and  never  can  be  any  better  without  a  radical  re- 
form. It  gives  the  impression,  too,  that  the  medicines  them- 
selves must  be  the  worst  of  their  kind,  when  every  thing  about 
them  bears  evidence  of  so  much  neglect. 

As  to  the  diseases,  they  can  not  be  the  same  here  as  with 
us.  There  is  little  or  no  consumption :  I  do  not  recollect  of 
even  a  single  case.  Dysentery  reigns  prime  minister  in  the 
court  of  Death.  I  tried  in  vain  to  get  at  the  statistics  of  the 
matter,  but  there  were  none  at  hand,  and  can  only  express  an 
opinion  that  about  one  third  of  the  deaths,  if  not  one  half,  are  ul- 


DOCTORS  AND  DISEASES.  233 

timately  from  this  disease.  I  was  surprised  at  the  small  num- 
ber of  insane  patients.  Dismal  indeed  is  their  condition,  and 
I  think  few  recoveries  could  occur  here.  Syphilitic  patients  are 
not  admitted.  Many  that  apply  from  other  diseases  must  be 
refused ;  and  Dr.  Merizalde  assured  me  that,  were  the  hospital 
empty  and  opened  for  this  disease  alone,  it  would  be  filled  in  a 
day! 

Of  course,  the  old  monastery  is  not  without  its  pictures  illus- 
trative of  the  life  of  its  patron  saint.  Here  we  see  two  devils 
tossing  him  back  and  forth  to  each  other.  I  saw  the  hanging- 
scene  described  by  Steuart,  but  our  recollections  differ  widely : 
instead  of  a  monk  hanging  a  heretic,  it  seemed  rather  to  me 
that  the  devil  was  strangling  a  man  either  with  a  rope  or  his 
tail,  and  that  the  saint  delivers  the  victim.  It  is  not  very  im- 
portant which  is  right,  only  I  would  put  this  most  charitable 
construction  on  the  matter ;  but  if  I  am  wrong,  so  much  the 
worse  for  the  devil. 

Speaking  of  pictures,  I  saw  one  that,  I  confess,  surprised  me 
a  little,  hanging  at  the  door  of  the  church  at  a  great  fiesta. 
Pictures  are  frequently  loaned  on  such  occasions,  and  any  face, 
male  or  female,  is  at  once  received  as  a  saint.  The  one  in 
question,  however,  was  not  in  a  shape  to  give  much  scope  to 
charity :  it  was  the  priest  Abelard  making  love  to  Heloisa.  I 
mentioned  the  matter  at  home,  and  a  guest  present  showed  that 
she  was  better  posted  up  in  that  old  love-affair  than  was  cred- 
itable to  her,  in  my  opinion. 

I  can  not  say  that  I  think  the  medical  school  or  the  faculty 
stand  very  high  in  general.  Probably  one  half  of  the  popula- 
tion never  pay  a  fee — dying  is  cheaper.  Dr.  Cheyne,  a  Scotch 
gentleman  who  married  here  long  since,  and  one  or  two  natives 
who  have  studied  in  Paris,  are  the  only  ones  on  whom  I  could 
venture  to  rely.  Fortunately,  I  never  stood  in  need  of  them. 
The  people  here  are  said  to  be  very  averse  to  large  fees.  Out 
of  cities  a  man  can  not  live  by  practice,  so  it  seems  to  me,  as 
there  is  not  the  tenth  of  the  whole  population  that  ever  receive 
any  medical  assistance  from  the  day  of  their  birth  till  their 
death,  both  inclusive. 

There  are  four  or  five  apothecaries'  shops  here.  They  appear 
as  good  as  need  be :  not  as  showy  as  our  best,  but  really  in  good 


234  NEW  GRANADA. 

condition  and  well  served.  I  knew  best  that  of  Dr.  Lombana. 
If  a  prescription  were  written  with  the  weights  here  used,  I 
would  have  no  fear  but  that  it  would  be  properly  put  up.  The 
safest  way  would  be  to  write  the  prescription  in  granos  of  -j^ 
of  a  grain :  a  useful  fact  to  remember,  if  we  could  only  be  sure 
of  it.  But  the  diversity  of  languages  on  earth  is  hardly  more 
perplexing  than  the  diversity  of  weights  and  measures,  and 
here  they  are  little  sure  of  them,  for  their  own  have  been  chang- 
ed so  often.  Now  the  legal  standard  is  that  of  the  French.  It 
ought  to  be  universal. 

You  are  struck  with  the  medicines  here  as  being  the  same  as 
at  home.  There  are  no  druggists  here.  Even  the  ipecacuanha, 
if  not  the  sarsarparilla,  are  brought  from  Europe  or  the  United 
States.  The  pharmacopoeia  is  the  old  Spanish  one,  but  most 
of  the  medical  books  read  here  are  French.  Indeed,  a  man  who 
reads  no  other  language  than  Spanish  ought  never  to  pass  for 
an  educated  physician. 

From  the  Hospital  it  is  natural  to  go  to  the  Prison.  I  would 
wish  to  be  excused  from  this  task ;  but  as  the  jefe  politico  offer- 
ed to  accompany  me  in  person,  and  as  a  prison  is  always  a  prop- 
er place  to  tell  the  truth  of,  I  could  not  excuse  myself.  The 
provincial  prison  is  in  the  same  block  with  the  Halls  of  Con- 
gress, and  distant  not  200  feet  from  the  chair  of  the  President 
of  the  Senate.  The  entrance  is  on  the  street  that  runs  down 
from  the  south  side  of  the  square.  A  guard  of  soldiers  is  always 
at  the  door.  The  prison  within  is  very  small  and  dirty  at  least, 
if  not  excessively  so.  It  has  not  a  whole  patio  to  itself,  but 
only  a  part  of  one,  built  in  by  a  high  brick  wall,  with  a  corredor 
running  round  two  sides  only.  Here  I  saw  still  some  debtors, 
though  on  recent  notes  there  is  now  no  liability  to  prison. 
One  room  was  used  as  a  chapel,  having  a  meanly  furnished  al- 
tar, but  at  the  same  time  it  served  as  dormitory.  This  building- 
is  the  nightly  resort  of  a  detachment  of  presidarios,  that  are  em- 
ployed during  the  day  as  scavengers,  and  in  the  burial  of  the 
poor,  etc.,  always  under  the  watch  of  soldiers. 

The  prisons  can  hardly  be  alleged  as  a  reproach  to  the  gov- 
ernment. True,  they  are  horrible,  with  the  single  exception  of 
the  Casa  de  Reclusion  at  Guaduas,  but  the  authorities  can  not 
remedy  the  matter,  though  they  would.  The  government  is 


HYDROGRAPHIC  NOTIONS.  235 

poor.  It  can  not  maintain  suitable  officers,  nor  can  it  furnish 
new  buildings  ;  and  with  crowded  rooms  and  low  salaries,  not 
Howard  himself,  were  he  alive,  could  keep  a  prison  from  being 
what  that  of  Bogota  emphatically  is — a  nuisance. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

THE  VALLEY   OP  THE   ORINOCO. 

Hydrography. — Paramo  of  Choachi. — Cordillera  of  Bogota  and  the  Provinces  on 
its  Summit.  —  Eastern  Wilderness. — Thermal  Springs.  —  Indian  Reserves. — 
Fortunate  Priest. — His  cunning  Penitent. — Cordage  Plant. — Laguna  Grande. 
— Hid  Treasures. — Murder  of  the  Chibcha  King. — Senor  Quevedo. — Bolivar. 
—  Joaquin  Mosquera. — Rafael  Urdaneta. — Domingo  Caicedo. — Jose  Maria 
Obando. — Francisco  de  Paulo  Santander. — Six  Administrations  and  three  Re- 
bellions.— Murder  and  Mystery. — Sucre,  Sarda,  and  Mariano  Paris. — Une. — 
Paramo  of  Cruz  Verde. — Rare  Plants. 

I  HAD  seen  plantains  and  oranges  descending  to  Bogota  by 
the  steep  roads  that  lead  from  the  paramos.  They  do  not  grow 
there.  Beyond  there  must  be  a  warmer  place,  and  I  wished  to 
see  it.  They  told  me  I  must  go  to  Ubaque.  To  Ubaque  I  re- 
solved to  go.  But  where  could  that  be  ?  In  the  basin  of  the 
Orinoco  ?  I  thought  it  hardly  possible,  and  I  asked  a  military 
gentleman.  He  assured  me  that  its  streams  were  tributaries  to 
the  Bogota.  But  he  spoke  of  cane  and  plantains  there,  and 
when  I  suggested  that  water  could  not  flow  from  a  cane-field 
up  to  this  cold  plain,  he  admitted  the  difficulty. 

Bogota  is  on  the  very  edge  of  the  basin  of  the  Orinoco.  The 
hydrographic  notions  of  the  country  have  not  been  very  exact, 
and  much  space  that  is  supposed  to  be  drained  by  the  Magda- 
lena,  in  reality  sends  its  waters  to  the  Orinoco.  Most  maps 
show  the  Bogota  Chain,  or  Eastern  Cordillera,  as  a  well-mark- 
ed, straight  ridge,  running  northeast.  Mosquera's  map  puts  Bo- 
gota half  way  between  this  ridge  and  the  Magdalena,  or  even 
nearer  the  river.  Tanner's  map  of  Colombia,  of  1829,  the  best 
yet  extant,  puts  Lake  Tota  and  the  battle-field  of  Boyoca  far 
west  of  the  ridge.  I  had  to  close  up  his  outlet  of  Lake  Tota 
into  the  Sogamoso,  and  open  with  my  pen  a  new  one,  the  Upia, 
from  the  opposite  end  of  the  lake,  and  over  a  high  mountain 


236  NEW  GRANADA. 

ridge  into  the  Meta,  and  Orinoco.  The  map  of  Acosta,  the 
best  Granadan  geographer  that  ever  lived  till  Codazzi  took  that 
place,  shows  that  same  error.  Lastly,  another  map  puts  Bogo- 
ta entirely  east  of  the  Andes,  in  the  plains  of  the  Orinoco  ! 

In  all  my  previous  expeditions  I  wore  boots.  I  now  intro- 
duced my  foot  to  a  new  chaussure,  the  alpargate  or  alpargata. 
Imagine  a  mat  made  of  braided  string  of  the  exact  size  of  the 
sole  of  the  foot.  The  braid  is  first  coiled  in  the  proper  shape, 
and  then  sewed  by  a  long  needle  passing  through  the  whole 
width  from  side  to  side.  A  woven  cap  is  sewed  on  at  the  toe, 
although  the  very  tip  is  left  open,  so  that  the  extremity  of  the 
great  toe  is  visible.  At  the  heel  a  strap  is  fastened,  so  as  to 
come  up  behind,  and  be  held  in  place  by  a  showy  woven  string 

that  ties  in  front  of  the  ankle.  In 
the  figure'  it  is  worn  slipper-fash- 
ion, and  to  the  practiced  eye  looks 
strange,  with  the  leg  of  the  panta- 
loons in  such  close  proximity. 

The  alpargate  is  the  best  pos- 
sible defense  for  the  foot  in  walk- 
ing. It  yields  to  the  motions  of 

ALPAKOATE    OR    ALPABQATA:  tllC     foot,    letS     it      t(lke    hold    Of    the 

ground,  and  does  not  heat  it.  Were  I  ever  to  walk  for  my  life, 
I  should,  if  possible,  walk  in  alpargatas.  The  price  in  Bogota 
is  fifteen  cents  a  pair,  but  in  the  Cauca  they  are  both  dearer  and 
poorer.  Still,  I  can  not  do  without  them.  It  is  a  significant 
circumstance,  too,  that  I  often  find  no  pair  large  enough.  I  am 
not  in  the  habit  of  looking  much  at  feet,  but  all  testimony  goes 
to  the  point  that  this  is  a  land  of  beautiful  feet,  and  that,  I  sup- 
pose, means  small  feet.  If  so,  the  best  proof  that  I  can  allege 
is  to  say  that  I  never  yet  found  one  alpargate  too  large  for  me, 
although  I  can  wear  most  gentlemen's  slippers  that  I  have  had 
occasion  to  try. 

There  are  two  other  routes  to  Ubaque,  but,  as  I  like  to  take 
a  circuit,  we  will,  by  your  leave,  go  by  Choachi.  So  first  we 
pass  the  Boqueron,  in  which  we  have  already  spent  much  time, 
and  pass  through  the  amphitheatre  we  saw  from  Montserrate. 
A  small  venta  stands  just  out  of  the  Boqueron,  and,  as  we  turn 
and  look  back,  you  agree  with  me  that  highway  never  penetrated 


PARAMO  DE  CHOACHI.  237 

a  more  rugged  defile.  Were  it  within  one  hundred  miles  of  New 
York  instead  of  two  miles  from  Bogota,  it  would  be  much  fre- 
quented. Many  ladies  here  have  never  passed  it.  Sublimity 
is  at  a  discount  here :  there  is  too  much  of  it. 

We  rise  continually  by  deep-worn  roads,  sometimes  steep, 
but  for  considerable  spaces  nearly  level.  We  left  the  San 
Francisco  at  the  mouth  of  the  Boqueron ;  indeed,  it  is  formed 
there  by  streams  coming  in  from  all  directions.  What  a  lonely 
road  !  It  seems  as  if  it  were  through  a  country  that  had  been 
rejected,  and  very  properly,  as  unfit  for  human  residence.  Now 
our  path  breaks  into  a  dozen,  and  all  bad ;  now  they  concen- 
trate in  a  callejon  so  narrow  as  to  render  it  difficult  to  let  a  poor 
woman  pass  you  with  a  huge  load  of  charcoal  on  her  shoulders 
covered  with  frailejon  leaves. 

We  rise  continually.  We  mark  our  progress  by  the  mount- 
ains behind  us,  and  particularly  the  Church  of  Montserrate. 
Now  its  top  is  seen  no  longer  against  the  blue  sky,  but  against 
the  blue  ridge  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  plain.  Now  the  frai- 
lejon becomes  abundant,  and  vegetation  assumes  a  more  gloomy 
hue.  Guadalupe,  too,  sinks,  and  the  whole  ridge  that  frowns 
over  Bogota,  with  its  head  covered  in  angry  clouds  while  we 
have  pleasant  weather  below,  has  now  subsided  so  as  to  allow 
us  to  see  the  plain  over  its  highest  peak,  and  far,  far  beyond,  if 
clouds  hide  it  not,  the  Quindio.  And  yet  we  rise. 

The  last  steep  is  gained,  and  before  us  what  would  be  called 
rolling  prairie  stretches  off  miles  to  the  east.  At  the  beginning 
of  this  stands  the  first  house  on  the  road  since  we  left  the  venta 
of  the  Boqueron — and  such  a  miserable  house !  A  small  in- 
closure  here  was  devoted  to  potatoes  or  arracachas,  but  besides 
naught  seemed  to  encourage  the  hopes  of  man.  Siberia  must 
be  a  paradise  in  comparison.  Long  and  desolate  was  my  jour- 
ney over  the  paramo  of  Choachi.  And  yet  it  scarcely  deserves 
the  name  of  paramo :  it  is  too  low  and  too  warm.  There  were 
a  number  of  houses,  too  ;  but  I  am  told  that  in  bad  weather  the 
inhabitants  must  keep  within  doors. 

Why  is  this  plain  colder  than  those  of  Africa  ?  The  sun 
strikes  it  as  fairly.  The  air,  nearly  twice  as  rare,  can  not  carry 
off  the  heat  so  fast.  I  confess  that  I  know  of  no  reason  except 
that  the  surface  is  farther  removed  from  the  molten  interior  of 


238  NEW   GRANADA. 

our  planet,  the  chief  source  of  our  heat,  which  is  aided  less  by 
the  sun  than  we  are  apt  to  suppose. 

The  under  surface  of  our  Northern  snows  melts  in  the  spring, 
and  the  ground  thaws  before  the  rays  of  the  sun  reach  it.  The 
streams  that  descend  from  perpetual  snows  are,  I  suspect,  sup- 
plied from  its  under  surface. 

Still,  it  is  to  be  expected  that  the  temperature  of  even  the 
lowest  places  in  this  country  should  be  less  than  that  justly  due 
to  their  elevation,  or,  if  you  please,  to  the  thickness  of  the  crust 
on  which  they  stand.  Every  breeze  that  fans  the  nook  of  Vijes 
from  the  west  has  left,  not  20  minutes  before,  altitudes  where 
you  would  shiver.  If  from  the  east,  it  may  have  been  warming 
some  two  hours,  and  if  from  the  south,  much  longer ;  but  even 
from  the  north,  we  can  scarce  get  a  puff  that  has  not  been  play- 
i.;g  around  some  peak  that  frost  visits  every  night.  Hence,  if  a 
man  wants  a  specimen  of  the  torrid  zone,  he  can  not  find  it  in 
New  Granada,  and  there  must  be  many  plants  that  could  not 
live  here  except  in  hot-houses.  Hence,  too,  a  Granadan  never 
has  heard  of  a  warm  night. 

But  this  talk,  though  good  for  dog-days  with  my  readers,  is 
too  cool  a  theme  for  the  paramo  of  Choachi.  Let  us  hasten  on. 
There  are  some  peaks  above  us  that  I  should  like  to  climb,  but 
want  of  time  and  prudence  alike  forbid.  If  the  paramo  should 
get  angry,  "ponerse  bravo,"  we  should  have  fine  times  and  fine 
fare  in  one  of  these  desolate,  fireless,  windowless  huts,  even  could 
we  reach  one.  How  still  it  is !  No  birds  come  here.  Insects 
have  here  no  home.  The  very  streams  do  not  gurgle  as  they  do 
below.  This  must  be  due  to  the  rarity  of  the  atmosphere.  I 
drank  of  their  waters  at  a  natural  bridge  of  a  large  flat  stone, 
under  which  flowed  a  small  mill-stream,  a  tributary  to  the  Ori- 
noco. In  an  hour  from  Bogota  we  cross  the  "  divide,"  though 
I  had  great  difficulty  to  even  learn  the  name  for  a  hydrographic 
basin — hoyo — for  intelligent  men  never  had  thought  of  one. 

In  one  of  these  hollows  I  passed  a  singular  bush — any  bush 
is  singular  here — but  this  had  leaves  as  large  as  apple-leaves, 
white  underneath,  and  of  a  pungent  taste.  It  is  the  well-known 
Winter's  bark — Drymis  Winteri.  It  is  not  much  used  as  a  med- 
icine. It  is  called  canelo,  thus  confounding  it  with  cinnamon, 
which  it  might  serve  to  adulterate,  though  it  has  only  the 


CORDILLERA  DE  BOGOTA.  239 

pungency  to  excess,  while  the  agreeable  flavor  is  entirely  want- 
ing. 

We  approach  the  eastern  edge  of  the  paramo.  I  am  amazed 
at  the  width  of  the  mountain  summit,  and  consider  it  the  type 
of  the  whole  Bogota  chain.  Entire  provinces  sit  on  the  top  of 
it,  side  by  side,  north  of  here,  for  in  Velez,  Socorro,  Tunja,  Tun- 
dama,  and  Pamplona,  few ,  important  towns  lie  on  either  side 
down  in  the  region  of  the  cane. 

And  this  mountain  top  is  the  garden  of  New  Granada  and 
of  all  South  America.  Nowhere  in  America,  except  in  some 
few  of  the  United  States,  is  there  so  dense  a  population  as 
swarms  in  this  sea  of  hills.  They  lack  but  the  proper  educa- 
tion to  make  them  one  of  the  best  races  on  earth.  The  Socor- 
ranos  are  proverbially  enterprising,  and  all  of  the  inhabitants  of 
the  cold  lands  are  constitutionally  industrious. 

Nature  has  here  been  prodigal  of  her  mineral  wealth.  Just 
north  of  the  great  Sabana  are  the  mines  of  rock  salt  at  Cipaqui- 
ra.  A  little  farther  on  are  the  iron  mines  of  Pacho.  The  em- 
eralds of  the  world  come  from  Muzo  and  Somondoco.  North 
of  Muzo  is  the  copper  mine  of  Moniquira,  and,  lastly — to  say 
nothing  of  tin,  lead,  and  sulphur,  none  of  which  are  systematic- 
ally extracted — the  gold  deposits  of  the  vicinity  of  Piedecuesta. 
But  the  most  valuable  of  all  mineral  deposits  is  coal,  and  this, 
though  perhaps  less  abundant  than  in  England  or  Pennsylva- 
nia, is  practically  inexhaustible  in  the  present  condition  of  the 
nation. 

I  look  forward  from  the  very  eastern  edge,  where  little  crosses, 
erected  in  gratitude  by  those  who  had  lived  to  toil  up  the  steep 
ascent,  stand  thick  around  my  feet ;  or  perchance  some  may  be 
those  of  persons  anxious  about  their  descent,  who  prayed  to 
reach  the  bottom  with  unbroken  bones.  If  any  expect  here  to 
see  THE  PLAINS,  the  boundless  prairies  of  the  Orinoco,  he  will 
be  disappointed.  You  may  consider  them  and  the  Magdalena 
to  lie  at  about  equal  distances  from  here ;  and  so  you  see  be- 
fore you  a  depth  that  the  eye  can  not  measure,  and  beyond 
it  the  mountains  rising  again,  head  over  head,  and  you  know 
not  by  sight  that  you  have  passed  the  summit-level  of  the  Cor- 
dillera. 

How  are  these  mountains  occupied  ?    What  are  their  names  ? 


240 


NEW  GRANADA. 


What  towns  are  at  their  base  ?  The  mountains  are  unnamed, 
and  useless  to  man.  A  few  horrible  paths  thread  past  their 
base,  but  they  are  unknown  to  the  traveler.  The  Orinoco  and 
Amazon  drain  nearly  one  half  of  New  Granada,  but  of  it.-- 
2,243,730  souls  in  the  census  of  1851,  only  51,072  are  ascribed 
to  this  region,  besides  that  of  some  cold  lands  usually  supposed 
to  be  drained  into  the  Magdalena.  Of  these,  28,873  are  in  the 
cantones  of  San  Martin  and  Caqueza,  in  the  province  of  Bogota 
— the  empire  province,  that  extends  from  the  Magdalena  to 
the  Orinoco ;  18,523  to  the  province  of  Casanare,  and  3676  to 
the  vast  territories  of  San  Martin  and  Mocoa,  between  which 
the  law  has  not  marked  out  the  limits. 

And  in  all  this  vast  space  there  are  but  seven  post-offices. 
Here,  then,  we  have  a  future  world,  the  very  edge  of  which 
only  is  occupied  with  a  few  civilized  Indians.  Caqueza,  a  good 
day's  journey  from  Bogota  (25  miles),  is  as  far  in  as  people  often 
penetrate.  All  this  side  is  sparse  settlement ;  all  beyond  is  ef- 
fectively wilderness. 


1!»    A    fILLOH. 


FAMILY  JOURNEYING.  241 

While  pausing  as  if  for  a  plunge,  let  us  take  a  survey  of  a 
party  just  emerging  from  the  depths  beneath  us,  who  have  been 
stopping  to  adjust  their  dress  to  the  climate  on  which  they  are 
entering.  The  principal  figure,  which  a  casual  observer  might 
regard  as  a  heap  of  something  carelessly  laid  on  a  mule,  would, 
after  unwrapping  it  like  a  mummy,  be  found  to  have  for  its  nu- 
cleus a  respectable  and  somewhat  elegant  lady  of  Bogota,  though 
not  at  present  in  a  condition  for  athletic  exercises.  Hence  she 
has  been  condemned  to  make  this  expedition  in  a  sillon — a  con- 
veyance by  no  means  so  secure,  except  when  a  lady  is  clumsy, 
as  the  Turkish,  or  even  the  European. 

Her  feet,  you  see,  are  on  the  contrary  side  from  that  which 
they  occupy  when  she  uses  the  side-saddle.  The  sillon  is  rich- 
ly ornamented  with  red  morocco  and  silver,  and  is  so  cushioned 
as  to  be  quite  easy  to  the  rider  when  going  at  the  pace  of  an 
ox,  but  nof  probably  as  comfortable  to  the  beast  as  a  saddle. 
Behind  follows  her  husband,  bearing  her  first-born  in  his  arms. 
The  figure  on  foot  puzzles  me  most.  Clearly  he  is  no  Indian, 
and  his  hat  is  that  of  a  gentleman ;  but  the  load  he  bears,  the 
pantaloons  rolled  up,  and  the  alpargatas,  indicate  that  for  once 
he  is  taking  resolutely  a  position  to  which  he  is  not  used.  My 
solution  is  not  a  very  charitable  one,  and  it  may  not  be  true. 
It  is  this :  they  are  a  party  that  have  been  down  to  Choachi,  or, 
perhaps,  to  Ubaque,  to  templar,  which  I  translate  thaw  out. 
They  have  been  gambling  there,  and  have  lost.  They  went 
down  on  four  hired  mules,  with  a  carguero  for  the  child,  and 
come  back  as  we  see  them,  because  they  have  need  to  retrench. 
One  saddle  and  part  of  their  luggage — equipaje — has  been  left 
for  another  opportunity — perhaps  in  pawn.  This  explains  all 
we  see. 

A  descent  of  a  hundred  feet  brings  a  material  change  of  vege- 
tation. Here  I  came  upon  a  splendid  plant,  that  at  first  looked 
something  like  the  trumpet-honeysuckle,  with  scarlet  flowers 
three  inches  long.  It  proved  to  be  an  earth-growing  Loranthus, 
a  bush  eight  feet  high.  I  afterward  found,  just  east  of  the  Bo- 
queron,  a  smaller  species — L.  Mutisii — with  flowers  six  inches 
long;  and  I  have  seen  another  terrestrial  species,  with  much 
smaller  yellow  flowers.  A  splendid  Melastomate  bush  grows 
down  here  too,  and  farther  down  some  tall  trees  of  that  Order 

Q 


242  NEW   GRANADA. 

tantalized  me  with  flowers  for  which  I  sighed  in  vain.  This 
species  has  been  published  by  Karsten  and  Triana  as  Codazzia 
rosea.  Here,  too,  I  incautiously  seized  on  a  large,  handsome 
yellow  flower,  a  Loasa,  that  stung  like  a  wasp. 

Just  before  entering  the  woods,  I  stopped  at  a  venta  with 
some  peasants  that  I  had  fallen  in  with.  They  opened  a  wallet 
and  took  out  some  provisions,  and  proceeded  to  lunch.  One  of 
them  ventured  to  urge  on  me  a  delicate  morsel,  a  piece  of  roast- 
ed crisp  rind  of  pork,  but  I  declined,  assuring  him  that  I  was 
not  in  the  least  hungry. 

At  the  bottom  I  found  a  hot  sulphur-spring.  A  stream  ran 
from  it  into  a  little  bathing-house,  where  also  was  led  in  a  stream 
of  cold  water,  so  as  to  reduce  the  temperature  till  it  could  be  en- 
dured. A  considerable  quantity  of  gas  escaped  from  the  spring, 
which  I  supposed  to  be  carbonic  acid.  I  had  not  even  a  ther- 
mometer with  me,  and  can  only  say  that  it  seems  quite  prob- 
able that  the  spring  is  hot  enough  to  boil  an  egg  in  time.  It  is 
strange  that  this  spring  is  not  more  known  and  resorted  to  as  a 
watering-place  ;  but  the  Bogotanos  love  cold  bathing,  and  would 
rather  ice  their  water  than  heat  it. 

On  the  Plain  of  Bogota  are  also  thermal  springs  worthy  of 
examination,  but  I  did  not  even  hear  of  them  till  too  late  to  visit 
them.  Those  of  Tabio,  some  twenty  miles  north  of  Bogota, 
have  a  temperature  of  114°,  while  a  stream  flows  near  them  with 
a  temperature  of  53°.  There  are  also  others  at  Suba,  ten  or 
fifteen  miles  north  of  the  capital. 

From  the  spring,  which  was  a  little  below  the  road,  I  pro- 
ceeded south  to  Choachi.  This  is  a  tolerable  village,  standing 
on  a  level  spot  on  the  side  hill,  but  a  mile  or  more  from  the 
roaring  stream  that  flowed  along  the  base.  Both  sides  of  this 
river  are  thickly  settled  with  Indians.  I  have  not  seen  so  much 
cultivation  in  all  this  country,  and  the  scene  delighted  me  inex- 
pressibly. The  district  of  Choachi  contains  4691  inhabitants  ; 
Ubaque,  a  little  farther  on,  3399 ;  while  on  the  other  side  of 
the  stream,  the  district  of  Fomeque  contains  6645.  The  amount 
of  white  blood  in  all  this  multitude  is  quite  small. 

The  land  here  has  been  kept  in  the  hands  of  the  Indians  by 
a  benevolent  provision  of  the  law,  restraining  them  from  selling 
except  according  to  certain  provisions ;  but,  with  the  advancing 


244 


NEW   GRANADA. 


THE  PENITENT.  245 

ideas  of  liberty,  it  is  seen  that  it  is  undemocratic  to  restrain 
thus  a  man's  liberty.  The  matter  is  now  with  the  provincial 
Legislatures,  and  in  some  provinces  these  reserves — resguardas 
— can  be  sold  only  at  auction,  and  in  others,  any  man  that  can 
persuade  one  of  these  thoughtless  aborigines  to  sell  to  him  can 
buy  at  any  price,  however  small.  It  grieves  me  to  hear  that 
large  numbers  have  sold.  Among  the  most  diligent  buyers  of 
resguardas  is  the  Cura  of  Choachi,  who  is  now  the  owner  of  land 
that  once  was  occupied  by  a  score  of  families. 

I  was  talking  with  one  of  his  flock,  and  mischievously  asked 
what  kind  of  a  mistress  the  priest  kept,  and  the  simpleton,  with- 
out any  apparent  surprise  at  the  question,  told  me  that  she  was 
very  pretty.  And  yet,  I  think,  it  is  of  this  place  that  they  tell 
me  of  a  'cute  trick  at  the  confessional.  An  Indian  was  going 
to  confess,  and  his  unlawful  companion  accompanied  him  as  far 
as  a  certain  cross,  where  he  desired  her  to  await  his  return.  So 
our  priest,  who  disliked  concubinage,  as  it  diminished  his  mar- 
riage-fees, asks  him, 

"Are  you  married  ?" 

"No,  senor." 

"  Do  you  live  with  a  woman?" 

"  I  have  lived  with  one,  senor,  but  I  have  left  her  as  far  back 
as  the  cross." 

Now  by  The  Cross  the  priest  understood  their  festival  of  3d 
May,  which  had  elapsed  so  long  that  he  thought  proper  to  let  by- 
gones be  bygones,  and  Jose  got  off  with  quite  a  light  penance. 
The  matter  being  squared  up  to  mutual  satisfaction,  he  return- 
ed to  "  the  cross,"  rejoined  his  companion,  and  they  went  home. 

Choachi  is  by  no  means  a  pretty  place.  The  houses  are  all 
of  one  story,  and  thatched ;  and  if  any  of  them  are  casas  clau- 
stradas,  still  they  appear  more  like  four  huts  placed  corner  to 
corner  than  a  regular  house.  The  Plaza  is  small,  and  I  think 
I  would  much  prefer  to  reside  on  the  opposite  slope.  Still,  the 
vicinity  of  the  thermal  spring,  and  other  causes,  make  it  some- 
thing of  a  watering-place.  On  the  opposite  page  is  exhibited 
the  most  successful  imitation  of  European  costumes  and  cus- 
toms that  I  have  ever  heard  of.  That  all  these  six  figures,  clad 
in  imported  articles  exclusively,  could  have  ever  been  met  in  one 
day,  exceeds  my  belief.  With  such  care  has  every  thing  na- 


246  NEW   GRANADA. 

tional  been  banished,  that  I  am  tempted  to  think  that  they  them- 
selves have  been  imported  to  order  packed  in  sawdust. 

To  me  there  is  much  more  interest  in  the  two  remaining  fig- 
ares.  The  Indian  woman,  who  is  selling  Granadillas  to  them, 
is  seated  behind  an  empty  cage  to  sell  fowls  from.  Her  way  of 
wearing  her  mantellina,  hanging  loosely  down  her  back,  shows 
her  a  reinosa  or  uplander.  The  term  New  Kingdom  of  Grana- 
da did  not  at  first  include  the  coasts,  and  a  kingdom-man  is 
now  used  as  the  opposite  of  calentano,  or  inhabitant  of  the  Ti- 
erra  Caliente.  But  the  person  that  interests  me  most  is  that 
boy  on  his  way  from  Fomeque  to  Bogota.  He  too  carries  fowls, 
and  some  other  articles  for  sale,  protected  by  a  goat-skin,  also 
for  sale.  He  has  taken  off  his  hat  to  say  Sacramento  del  altar 
to  the  grand  folks,  who  are  too  busy  scrutinizing  the  Granadil- 
las even  to  see  him. 

He  wears  under  his  hat  a  handerchief  bound  on  his  head.  A 
heavy  ruana  and  a  camisa  protect  part  of  his  body.  Then  comes 
a  pair  of  scant  zamarras,  that  have  perhaps  some  pantaloons  un- 
der them  still  more  scant,  while  his  ankles  and  insteps  must  take 
all  risks  that  offer  themselves.  The  sole  only  of  the  foot  is  pro- 
tected by  the  albarca  of  hide,  far  inferior  to  the  alpargate  ex- 
cept in  mud.  It  is  not  often  so  well  secured  as  here  we  see  it. 
Generally  a  toe  is  thrust  through  a  loop  made  for  it,  and  it  is 
slightly  fastened  at  the  heel. 

At  Choachi  I  left  the  main  road,  and  ascended  among  the 
fields  until  it  was  again  quite  cold.  Here  I  was  under  the  ne- 
cessity of  asking  the  way  at  a  rancho.  It  consisted  of  two  roofs 
and  a  gable,  while  the  end  toward  the  north  was  open  as  door 
and  window.  Quite  a  number  of  happy-looking  Indian  girl,'? 
seemed  to  be  at  work  within.  They  were  employed  on  the  fibre 
of  Fourcroya,  a  plant  too  important  to  be  passed  by.  It  is  fre- 
quently called  aloe  and  century  plant.  But  the  century  plant 
is  not  an  Aloe,  but  Agave  Americana,  while  this  plant  is  neither 
Aloe  nor  Agave.  Like  the  Agave,  the  Fourcroya  is  a  slow- 
growing  plant,  with  leaves  three  or  four  feet  long,  five  inches 
wide,  and  half  an  inch  thick.  After  vegetating  in  this  way  for 
years,  it  shoots  up  a  flower-stem  ten  or  twenty  feet  high,  gen- 
erally sheds  from  it  abortive  flowers  and  bulbs,  and  then  dies. 

This  plant  is  called  mague,  cabuya,  and  fique.     The  pith  of 


GRANADAN  CORDAGE.  247 

the  huge  flower-stem,  often  six  inches  in  diameter,  is  used  as 
tinder  after  the  ends  of  the  fibres  have  been  once  scorched. 
From  the  leaves  is  extracted  a  fibre  resembling  that  which  is 
called  Manilla-grass.  The  long  leaves  are  split,  and  two  hard 
sticks,  held  close  together  on  opposite  sides  of  a  piece,  scrape 
away  the  epidermis  and  parenchyma,  leaving  nothing  but  the 
strong  white  fibres  of  the  length  of  the  leaf.  No  other  appara- 
tus is  used  in  the  manufacture.  It  is  twisted  into  cords  and 
ropes,  knit  into  bags  (guambias,  mochilas,  and  talegas),  or  braid- 
ed into  alpargate  stuff.  It  might,  were  articles  of  commerce 
needed,  supply  a  large  quantity  from  dry  knolls,  useless  other- 
wise except  for  pasture.  I  suspect  that  it  could  be  nearly  pre- 
pared for  use  by  simply  passing  it  once  through  a  close  pair  of 
iron  rollers. 

The  Fourcroya  is  an  Amarillate  plant.  The  finer  and  more 
costly  fibre,  called  pita,  is  said  to  be  from  a  Bromeliate  plant, 
of  which  I  never  have  seen  the  working  of  the  leaf,  nor  yet  the 
flower ;  and  from  the  leaves  of  the  prince  of  the  Bromeliate  fam- 
ily, the  pine-apple,  a  still  finer  fibre  is  now  found  in  our  North- 
ern cities  in  the  form  of  most  costly  handkerchiefs. 

Well,  these  poor  Indian  girls,  on  the  shoulder  of  the  mount- 
ain, separated  from  Bogota  only  by  a  few  miles  of  steep  rock 
and  paramo,  were  twisting  cabuya  in  that  low,  miserable  rancho. 
They  were  evidently  alarmed  at  the  sudden  appearance  of  a  for- 
eigner at  the  mouth  of  their  den,  and  were  quite  relieved  when 
I  informed  them  that  I  wanted  to  know  the  direction  of  Laguna 
Grande,  nothing  more.  True,  they  suffer  far  less  outrage  from 
the  Spaniards  than  they  would  from  the  more  brutal  outlaws  of 
the  Anglo-Saxon  race,  but  they  are  less  protected  by  law  there 
than  they  would  be  in  those  Northern  States  where  the  testi- 
mony of  an  Indian  is  received  in  courts.  Poor  race !  In  Dan- 
te's Hell  they  should  be  employed  in  the  exclusive  work  of  tor- 
turing conquerors  and  legislators. 

I  had  risen  to  the  foot  of  the  ledge  that  has  the  earthy  land 
above  Bogota  on  the  west  side,  the  paramo  on  its  broad  top, 
and  cultivable  slopes  extending  on  the  east  side  far  down  to 
the  river  below  me.  I  followed  along  still  south  till  directly 
before  me  was  an  abrupt  descent  to  a  basin  nearly  filled  with 
many  acres  of  water,  black,  still,  and  cold  as  death.  Lake 


248  NEW  GRANADA. 

Avernus  in  summer  must  be  smiling  in  comparison,  but  in  a 
bleak  Italian  December  they  must  be  as  like  as  twins.  No 
summer  ever  smiles  on  Laguna  Grande.  A  perennial  autumn, 
with  its  alternate  sun,  mist,  and  storm,  have  reigned  here  from 
the  day  of  creation  till  now.  It  has  a  fringe  of  bushes,  with 
quaking  marsh  within,  and  a  centre  that  is  said  to  be  unfathom- 
able. No  singing-bird  has  ever  discovered  this  retreat,  and,  but 
for  the  chill-loving  disposition  of  these  Andine  Highlanders,  the 
Reinosos,  man  never  would  have  found  it. 

What  a  fine  place  for  traditions !  I  mentally  exclaimed. 
Was  there  ever  a  place  more  apropos  to  spirits  and  genii,  or  to 
hidden  treasures  ?  So  full  of  this  idea  was  I  that  my  first  ques- 
tion to  some  friends  I  met  below  was,  "Are  there  no  hidden 
treasures  at  the  bottom  of  that  pond  ?" 

"  They  say  that  there  is  wealth  incalculable  there,  Serior," 
was  the  reply.  "  It  is  said  that,  on  an  annual  festival,  the  Zipa, 
or  chief,  went  out  to  the  centre  of  Laguna  Grande  in  a  boat, 
wearing  a  rich  array  of  gold  and  emeralds,  and  during  the  cere- 
monies he  took  them  off  one  by  one,  and  dropped  them  into  the 
water." 

"  And  has  there  been  no  attempt  to  recover  them  ?" 
"It  has  often  been  projected,  but  never  attempted." 
But,  besides  the  treasures  thus  thrown  in  for  glory,  there  is 
equal  probability  of  others  thrown  there  for  spite.  In  1538  or 
1539  died,  near  Bogota,  Zaquesazipa,  last  Zipa  of  the  Muiscas, 
"  with  extraordinary  fevers — calenturas."  These  calenturas — 
burnings — are  supposed  to  have  referred  to  the  applications  of 
heated  horse-shoes  to  his  feet,  and  other  similar  torments,  by 
Quesada  the  Conqueror,  Hernan  Perez  his  brother,  Suarez 
(Rendon),  and  Garcia  (Zorro).  The  object  was  to  make  him 
tell  what  had  become  of  the  treasures  of  his  cousin  Tisquesusa, 
whose  kingdom  he  had  usurped  when  Quesada  murdered  him. 
These  treasures  never  have  been  recovered,  if  they  ever  existed, 
and,  if  thrown  to  utter  destruction,  were  most  probably  buried 
beneath  these  black,  still  waters ;  but  this  is  not  probable,  for 
hiding-places  on  land  may  answer  the  utmost  desires  of  con- 
cealment. 

Now,  as  I  am  writing,  it  occurs  to  me,  for  the  first  time,  to 
inquire  whether  this  deep  hole  be  the  crater  of  a  volcano.  It  is 


UBAQUE.  249 

on  a  side  hill  that  might  be  called  steep.  North  and  west  of 
the  laguna  the  ground  rises  as  steep  as  a  man  can  easily  climb. 
To  the  east  the  ground  rises  slightly  for  a  few  rods  to  a  height 
of  not  more  than  ten  feet,  I  should  judge,  above  the  level  of  the 
water,  and  then  falls  rapidly.  I  can  think  of  no  possible  theory 
to  account  for  its  origin  except  this,  but  I  did  not  notice  any 
evidence  there  of  any  other  than  a  sandstone  formation. 

Two  or  three  huts  of  Indians,  who  keep  some  rather  cross 
dogs,  stand  near  the  lake.  Want  of  time,  and  the.  expectation 
of  a  future  return  to  the  pond  prevented  my  observing  with  the 
care  I  now  wish  I  had  used. 

A  steep,  long  walk  brought  me  down  to  Ubaque.  It  is  quite 
a  collection  of  poor  houses  just  above  the  upper  limit  of  the 
cane.  It  is  one  of  the  watering-places  of  Bogota.  Though 
inferior  to  many  others,  it  is  perhaps  the  most  accessible.  I 
confess  I  would  rather  go  down  to  where  the  cane-boiling  fur- 
naces are  smoking  in  the  valley  below,  for  here  it  is  yet  much 
too  cold  to  suit  me.  The  Plaza  occupies  nearly  all  the  level 
ground  there  is,  and  the  houses  on  the  one  side  are  crowded 
against  the  hill,  and  the  ground  descends  steep  behind  those  on 
the  other.  A  noisy  torrent,  cold  enough  to  make  one's  teeth 
chatter  in  half  a  minute,  tears  down  to  the  river  below,  and 
makes  a  deliciously  cool  bath,  which  the  Bogotanos  enjoy  for 
half  an  hour  at  a  time.  I  was  glad  to  get  out  of  it  in  the  least 
possible  time,  and  would  as  lief  be  buried  naked  in  a  snow-bank 
as  to  venture  in  it  again. 

I  here  became  the  guest  of  an  excellent  fai»rlyr~of  Ye"nezofe- 
nos,  the  Quevedos.  Senor  Quevedo  is  an  officer  of  the  War  of 
Independence,  living  in  Bogota  on  his  savings,  his  half-pay,  or 
by  his  musical  talents.  I  am  sorry  to  come  to  such  a  conclu- 
sion, but  I  am  led  to  regard  this  and  another  Venezolano  family, 
that  of  Colonel  Codazzi,  as  the  two  most  interesting  I  have 
found  in  Bogota.  It  is  perhaps  because  I  understand  them 
best,  or  they  know  best  how  to  make  me  at  home.  I  think, 
too,  that  there  are  few  ladies  in  New  Granada  better  educated 
than  some  in  these  two  families. 

Senor  Quevedo  is  an  enthusiastic  admirer  of  Bolivar.  I  am 
happy  to  come  to  nearly  the  same  conclusions  with  himself  in 
the  main,  but  I  would  like  to  know  more  than  I  can  well  ascer- 


250  NEW   GRANADA. 

tain  about  his  concessions  to  the  priesthood.  I  can  not  con- 
sider him,  however,  as  actuated  by  a  base  love  of  power.  And 
when  Joaquin  Mosquera  was  elected  to  his  place,  I  do  not  re- 
gard it  as  a  wise  step,  and  fear  that  there  may  be  meaning  in 
the  hint  of  Samper,  that  the  "youth — juventud  (Vhoys?} — of 
Bogota"  had  more  to  do  with  the  matter  of  superseding  Bolivar 
than  they  ought.  We  may  well  suppose  that  the  old  hero 
sighed  at  leaving  the  reins  in  hands  all  too  weak  to  hold  them. 

I  can  not  think  that  Bolivar  had  any  thing  to  do  with  the 
revolution  in  which  Urdaneta,  after  the  battle  of  Santuario  at 
Puente  Grande,  September,  1830,  drove  out  the  feeble  adminis- 
tration. Rafael  Urdaneta,  a  good  subaltern  general,  was  never 
called  to  be  the  supreme  head  of  a  nation,  and  his  rebellion  was 
an  immense  mischief,  without  other  motive  that  I  can  guess  than 
personal  ambition.  Little  good  did  it  do  him  or  his  faction,  as 
in  nine  months,  15th  May,  1831,  he  was  as  easily  driven  out  as 
his  predecessor. 

What  became  of  Joaquin  ?  He  seems  to  have  had  enough 
of  the  executive,  and  in  the  short  space  from  the  retirement  of 
Bolivar,  we  find  the  supreme  power  in  the  hands  of  President 
Mosquera  till  September,  1830 ;  Dictator  Urdaneta  till  the  15th 
of  May,  1831 ;  Vice-president  Domingo  Caicedo  till  December, 
1831 ;  Obando  till  March,  1833,  when  the  Convention  that  form- 
ed the  first  Constitution  of  New  Granada  by  itself,  in  1832, 
made  Santander,  then  an  exile  for  his  share  in  the  conspiracy 
of  1828,  the  first  President  of  the  new  republic. 

Santander  was  a  good  president.  So  I  believe  from  the 
charges  against  him  by  Samper,  all  of  which  I  think  redound 
to  his  credit.  Especially  would  I  commend  to  future  govern- 
ments his  energy  with  the  Sarda  conspirators.  Sarda  had  no 
other  motives  than  ambition  or  fanaticism.  Many  of  the  con- 
spirators were  seized,  and  Sarda  and  Mariano  Paris,  who  escaped, 
were  outlawed,  a  proceeding  that  might  be  with  advantage  in- 
troduced at  the  North,  were  we  not  so  tender  with  criminals. 
I,  for  one,  think  they  deserve  no  more  protection  than  our  other 
citizens.  Paris  was  caught  and  shot,  under  plea  that  he  was 
likely  to  escape.  Sarda  was  assassinated  at  night,  in  a  house 
where  he  was  hid,  by  Jose  Ortiz,  a  lieutenant  in  the  army,  who 
was  not  openly  rewarded  nor  brought  to  trial.  Sixteen  of  the 


ADMINISTKATION  OF  MAEQUEZ.  251 

others  were  executed.  This  was  in  1833,  and  six  years  seem 
to  have  passed  without  another  conspiracy.  Had  Obando  and 
Lopez  been  treated  in  the  same  way,  perhaps  Herran,  Mosquera, 
and  Arboleda  never  would  have  been  found  in  arms  against 
their  own  country. 

But  as  there  are  few  active  men  in  New  Granada  that  have 
not  been  at  some  time  engaged  in  a  revolution,  they  have  be- 
come exceedingly  tender  on  that  point.  It  is  now  settled  that 
neither  death  nor  the  penitentiary  are  to  be  the  penalty  for  re- 
bellion any  more,  but  only  banishment,  without  confiscation  of 
goods,  till  politics  change.  But  the  latest  improvement  pro- 
posed is  this,  that  when  an  officer  is  banished  for  turning  his 
arms  against  the  authority  he  has  sworn  to  support,  his  pay 
should  be  continued  to  him  ! 

Now  this  is  all  nonsense.  Take  every  general,  and  of  other 
officers  all  who  have  commanded  detachments  at  five  hours' 
distance  from  a  superior ;  hang  one  and  shoot  the  rest.  Cash- 
ier for  cowardice  all  other  officers.  Imprison  with  hard  labor 
all  the  LL.D.'s  and  priests  (the  latter  for  life)  clearly  proved  in 
it,  and  the  next  revolution  will  be  the  last. 

Jose  Ignacio  Marquez,LL.D.,  who  was  elected  President  by 
Congress  on  4th  March,  1837,  was  also,  I  believe,  a  good  presi- 
dent. He  is  charged  with  not  being  rabid  enough,  and  with 
having  taken  no  steps  toward  Red  Republicanism.  It  is  said 
also  that,  being  elected  Vice-president  for  four  years  from  March, 
1835,  it  was  unconstitutional  to  make  a  president  of  him. 

The  rebellion  of  1839  began  in  Pasto,  in  consequence  of  the 
suppression  of  some  convents,  a  fact  that  indicates  that  the  Mar- 
quez  administration  was  not  entirely  inert.  Pasto  is  said  to  be 
the  most  elevated  valley  in  the  world,  and,  if  not  the  most  beau- 
tiful, is  perhaps  the  most  rebellious.  The  Pastusos  are  ignorant 
and  very  Christian.  Their  nearest  market  is  by  carrying  pota- 
toes, etc.,  over  horrible  roads,  on  their  backs,  seven  days'  march 
to  Barbacoas.  But  when  they  are  so  fortunate  as  to  be  invad- 
ed, the  camp  of  the  enemy  is  the  best  home  market  they  can 
ever  have,  to  say  nothing  of  the  privilege  of  robbing  travelers 
between  Bogota  and  Quito.  Thus,  with  them,  peace  and  pros- 
perity never  come  together. 

Samper  maintains  that  the  Marquez  administration  wished 


252  NEW  GRANADA. 

the  rebellion  to  become  as  serious  as  possible.  This  I  regard 
as  simply  absurd. 

Another  cause  of  the  revolution  was  Obando.  General  Sucre, 
marshal  of  Ayacucho,  was  shot  in  the  woods  of  the  Berruecos, 
in  Pasto,  in  open  day,  on  the  4th  June,  1830,  in  the  time  of  Bo- 
livar. The  mystery  of  that  affair  probably  never  will  be  solved. 
It  may  have  been  only  the  work  of  his  wife  and  her  paramour, 
General  Isidore  Barriga.  But  the  deed  was  rumored  in  Bogota 
soon  after  poor  Sucre  started  from  there,  and  was  anticipated  in 
Popayan  as  he  passed  there ;  and  a  picket  of  cavalry,  sent,  it 
is  supposed,  by  General  Juan  Jose  Florez,  afterward  president 
of  Ecuador,  and  lastly  pirate,  is  said  to  have  come  from  Ecuador 
secretly,  traveling  by  night,  and  to  have  returned  after  his  death. 
Lastly,  Colonel  Apolinar  Morillo,  once  a  robber  and  afterward  a 
tool  of  Obando's,  was  arrested  for  the  crime,  convicted,  confessed 
it,  said  Obando  ordered  the  act,  and  was  executed. 

Thus  rumor  knew  it  beforehand ;  causes  sufficient  for  the  se- 
cret commission  of  the  crime  are  known  ;  a  public  cause  from  a 
quarter  opposite  the  rumor  is  found;  scores  of  men,  that  knew  of 
the  deed  before  and  after  it  was  done,  confess  to  dozens  of 
priests ;  and,  lastly,  the  very  man  who  did  the  deed  tells  us  all 
about  it,  and  how  Obando,  and  perhaps  Lopez,  instigated  him, 
Sarria,  and  Erazo  to  it ;  and  yet  the  truth  never  will  be  known! 

I  give  here  a  strange  and  incredible  story,  that  will  show  bet- 
ter than  a  dozen  pages  of  dissertation  the  difficulty  of  unravel- 
ing political  mazes  here.  Archbishop  Herran  was  said  to  have 
been  Morillo's  confessor  before  his  execution.  His  sister-in-law, 
daughter  of  General  Mosquera  and  wife  of  General  Herran  (then 
a  mere  girl),  is  said  to  have  visited  the  criminal  frequently  (prob- 
ably an  unfounded  lie).  He  was  convicted  by  perjury,  and  prom- 
ised pardon  if  he  would  confess  the  deed  and  avow  Obando's 
agency  in  it.  This  he  was  to  do  on  the  shooting-bench  (ban- 
quillo),  and  be  pardoned  there.  He  went  there,  accompanied  by 
the  prelate,  told  his  lie,  received  the  last  rites  of  the  Church,  the 
confessor  stepped  away,  and  instead  of  the  pardon  came  the 
dread  word,  Fire !  and  Morillo  spoke  no  more.  And  there  is 
many  a  brain  here  so  fevered  with  political  hate  as  to  believe  all 
this,  and  to  believe  it  without  evidence. 

All  political  offenses  up  to  June,  1830,  were  included  in  an 


REVOLUTION  OF   1840.  253 

amnesty  of  the  Constitutional  Convention  in  1832.  Besides,  it 
was  a  crime  against  the  laAvs  of  Colombia,  and  New  Granada 
had  no  right  to  punish  it  when  Colombia  ceased  to  exist.  So, 
when  Obando  was  summoned  to  trial  in  1839,  Samper  regards  it 
as  a  persecution,  because  Obando  had  been  Santander's  preferred 
candidate  for  president  after  him,  and  was  now  mentioned  again 
for  the  next  canvass.  He  complained  of  unfairness  in  trial.  He 
fled.  He  returned  to  take  up  arms  against  his  country  in  the 
wilds  of  Pasto  and  Popayan,  where  half  his  life  had  been  spent 
in  scenes  of  blood. 

Ambition,  federalism,  and  minor  discontents  made  the  matter 
worse  in  1840.  So  many  governors  turned  traitors  that  the 
revolution  has  been  called  El  Revolucion  de  los  Gobernadores. 
It  is  difficult  to  count  the  battles  that  were  fought,  the  blood 
and  treasure  spent.  But  for  the  talents  and  energy  of  Mosque- 
ra,  then  Minister  of  War,  and  General  Herran,  the  debility  of 
Marquez  would  have  yielded  to  the  combination  of  adverse  cir- 
cumstances ;  but  the  party  in  power  triumphed  at  Culebrera  on 
28th  October,  1840,  almost  on  the  very  spot,  at  Puente  Grande, 
where  Joaquin  Mosquera  lost  his  power  ten  years  before.  The 
action  of  Tescua,  near  Pamplona,  1st  April,  1841,  and  some  skir- 
mishes on  the  coast,  were  the  last  of  this  unhappy  rebellion. 

Of  course,  the  life-sparing  Samper,  who  would  not  have  an  out- 
law killed  to  prevent  a  battle,  makes  a  great  outcry  at  the  sever- 
ity visited  on  the  leaders  of  the  rebellion.  Mosquera  and  Her- 
ran had  never  then  been  rebels  themselves,  and  took  more  lives 
than  they  would  again.  I  can  not  say  I  think  them  too  many,  if 
only  well  chosen,  which  Samper,  of  course,  thinks  they  were  not. 

Now  my  worthy  Venezolano  host  must  not  be  held  responsi- 
ble for  all  these  sentiments  as  I  give  them.  I  have  not  im- 
plicitly followed  his  views,  though  I  know  of  no  man's  that  are 
safer ;  I  have  made  much  subsequent  inquiry  upon  them,  and 
have  conversed  with  Obando  himself  on  the  assassination  of  Su- 
cre. About  that  I  am  completely  puzzled. 

I  wished  very  much  to  visit  Fomeque.  Its  white  church,  its 
apparently  scant  village,  and  its  hundreds  of  well-tilled  little 
farms,  more  in  number  than  I  had  seen  before  in  all  New  Gran- 
ada, were  a  temptation  to  me  almost  beyond  my  power  of  re- 
sistance. But  I  had  made  no  preparations  for  such  a  journey, 


254  NEW  GRANADA. 

so  I  reluctantly  abandoned  all  hope  of  seeing  Fomeque  and  Ca- 
queza,  and  at  early  dawn  took  a  cup  of  chocolate  and  set  out  on 
my  return. 

We  crossed  the  stream  that  runs  south  of  the  town,  and  as- 
cended through  a  wide  gorge  to  Pueblo  Viejo,  a  neighborhood  of 
scattered  houses,  that  I  suspect  bears  the  legal  name  of  Distrito 
of  Une.  At  the  last  of  these  houses,  the  most  western  farm  in 
the  valley  of  the  Orinoco,  I  stopped  to  breakfast.  The  mate- 
rials for  this  meal  had  been  brought  from  Ubaque,  but  some  ex- 
changes were  made  with  the  three  interesting  proprietresses  of 
the  house,  who,  now  a  little  in  years,  were  carrying  on  their  neat 
farm  by  hiring.  I  left  them  really  with  regret,  and  beg  the 
reader,  if  he  ever  go  from  Cruz  Verde  to  Pueblo  Viejo,  to  turn 
off  to  the  first  house  a  little  south  of  the  road  that  he  finds  on 
cultivable  ground. 

Soon  I  was  toiling  up  the  steep  ascent,  and  in  the  far  east 
other  hills  were  rising  from  behind  those  that  at  Ubaque  served 
as  a  background  to  the  farms  of  Fomeque.  Here  I  met  a  bar- 
berry— a  real  barberry — but  not  sour,  and,  in  fact,  uneatable.  I 
doubt  not  that  it  was  Berberis  glauca.  I  had  been  long  won- 
dering why  none  of  this  genus  were  to  be  found..  I  found  an- 
other as  I  descended  toward  the  west,  and  still  another,  all  that 
I  have  ever  seen  in  New  Granada,  just  before  the  last  descent  to 
Bogota.  This  first  one  had  the  leaves  very  white  beneath,  and 
here  too  I  was  struck  with  the  general  color  of  the  woods.  They 
were  gray.  Lichens  on  the  bark,  the  foliage,  the  flowers  on  the 
trees,  all  seemed  to  contribute  to  the  most  peculiar  and  the  light- 
est shade  of  color  I  ever  saw  in  a  landscape  densely  filled  with 
vegetable  life.  I  had  noticed  this  in  descending  from  the  para- 
mo of  Choachi,  but  in  a  less  degree.  In  descending  to  Fusa- 
gasuga  I  noticed  it  more  strongly  than  any  where  else. 

Just  at  the  foot  of  the  last  arduous  ascent  I  found  that  I  had 
lost  or  left  my  knife.  It  was  some  miles  back  that  I  had  last 
used  it.  It  was  impossible  to  designate  to  my  attendant  where 
I  had  probably  left  it,  nor  could  I  rely  on  getting  another.  No 
alternative  was  left  me  but  to  retrace  my  steps  for  even  the 
chance  of  finding  it  (I  had  met  several  persons),  but  I  succeed- 
ed. It  was  a  dear  purchase,  though  this  long  space,  which 
yielded  little  to  man  but  charcoal,  was  nearly  level.  I  thus 


PARAMO  OP  CRUZ  VERDE.  255 

passed  two  or  three  miserable  lonely  houses,  almost  without  cul- 
tivation around  them,  three  times  in  three  hours. 

Now  came  the  last  dire  ascent  of  half  a  mile,  much  of  it  as 
steep  as  the  stairs  in  Bunker  Hill  Monument.  Now  we  come 
to  the  top,  where  the  ground  is  thickly  planted  with  crosses. 
They  stand  at  the  top  of  every  such  steep  in  this  part  of  New 
Granada,  and  are  often  your  first  notice  of  a  horrible  descent. 
The  air  up  here  is  dreadfully  chill,  though  the  sun  shines  bright. 
With  a  mist  and  a  fierce  wind  in  the  face,  this  paramo  of  Cruz 
Verde  is  really  dangerous,  though  but  a  little  way  across. 

In  a  marsh  on  the  paramo  I  found  two  little  flowers,  neither 
an  inch  high.  I  set  about  gathering  them,  and  desired  my  serv- 
ant to  aid  me,  but  the  poor  fellow  was  so  cruelly  treated  by  the 
wind  and  cold  that  he  soon  gave  in,  and  sat  down  in  the  warm- 
est place  he  could  find.  I  did  not  blame  him  for  not  relishing 
entering  the  mud  with  wet  fingers  and  feet,  with  the  wintry  blast 
howling  round  him,  for  such  insignificant  weeds,  of  which  a 
hundred — an  hour's  work — would  not  weigh  an  ounce.  I  pick- 
ed here,  too,  some  Lycopodiums,  and  what  I  thought  might  be 
Selago  among  them.  It  was  destined  to  astonish  me  when  I 
found  it  to  be  Alchemilla  nivalis,  a  Rosate  plant !  It  was  bui 
a  single  specimen  and  out  of  flower.  As  Aragoa  abietina  grows 
just  west  of  the  paramo,  it  well  deserves  a  day  from  the  botanist. 

A  little  while  after  leaving  the  paramo,  a  chasqui  overtook 
us.  He  was  a  runner,  a  bearer  of  dispatches  from  some  official 
at  the  east,  perhaps  to  the  governor  in  Bogota.  He  had  left 
or  passed  Ubaque  late  in  the  morning,  and  was  now  pressing  on, 
so  that,  had  we  not  quickened  our  steps  to  four  miles  or  more 
an  hour,  he  would  have  passed  us  easily.  These  chasquies  used 
to  serve  without  pay,  if  they  do  not  still,  and  an  appointment  to 
this  "  onerous  office"  was  sometimes  an  intimation  of  some  offi- 
cial to  his  enemy  that  he  had  not  forgotten  him.  At  length  I 
fell  upon  some  plant  I  must  collect,  and  the  chasqui,  who  de- 
layed not  a  step,  disappeared  at  a  turn  of  the  road. 

I  stepped  into  a  miserable  cottage  to  screen  me  from  the  wind 
while  I  put  my  plants  into  paper.  From  the  shape  of  my  pack- 
age, they  supposed  that  I  had  saints  (pictures)  for  sale.  A  few 
cheap  colored  lithographs  of  "Mary,"  and  "Ellen,"  "Rose," 
&c.,  would  be  invaluable  presents  to  this  poor  people.  They 


256  NEW  GRANADA. 

lead  a  miserable  life,  being  many  of  them  wood-sellers.  They 
do  not  .cultivate  much,  probably  because  it  takes  some  months 
before  they  gain  any  thing  from  their  labor,  and  they  know  not 
how  to  look  forward  so  long. 

Sometimes  the  ground  was  slippery  for  rods  with  water ;  in 
places,  the  road  was  the  bed  of  a  brook,  and  we  crossed  some 
rivulets  on  round  stones.  Now  the  ground  at  our  left  assumes 
the  appearance  of  a  steep  valley,  where  these  waters  gather  and 
descend  to  the  plain,  which  bursts  upon  our  sight  just  here. 
This  is  the  Rio  Fucha,  which  below  serves  as  a  bathing-place 
to  the  Bogotanos  and  Bogotanas,  where  it  is  seen  on  the  Plan 
of  Bogota  at  m. 

The  sun  is  fast  descending,  and  so  are  we;  he  beyond  the 
Quindio  mountains,  and  we  to  Las  Cruces,  the  southern  church 
in  Bogota.  We  have  passed  over  unnoticed  the  last  part  of  the 
way,  for  we  have  seen  it  in  a  previous  chapter.  And  now,  good 
reader,  you,  as  well  as  I,  would  willingly  rest. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

CONGRESS,  CONSTITUTIONS,  INSTITUTIONS,  AND  WEATHER. 

Congress  Halls. — Opening  of  Congress. — Audience. — Constitutions  of  1843  an>l 
1853. — Defect  of  the  latter. — Finances. — Descentralizacion. — Mint. — Mail-. 
— Provincial  Schools. — Colegio  Militar. — Observatory. — Caldas. — Hoyo  del 
Aire.  —  Schools  and  Studies.  —  Manufactories.  —  The  dependent  Classes.  — 
Weather,  Temperature,  etc.,  of  Bogota. 

CONGRESS  meets  as  soon  as  the  festivities  of  Christmas  and 
New  Year  are  over.  The  plan  of  the  ceremonies  is  nearly  based 
on  our  own.  I  had  the  pleasure  of  witnessing  the  opening  on 
one  occasion.  The  heads  of  departments  (ministros),  who  have 
a  voice  in  the  House,  have  seats  there,  and  were  present.  The 
message  was  ready  printed,  and,  at  the  proper  time,  when  each 
house  had  chosen  its  president,  and  the  message  had  been  read, 
copies  of  it  were  distributed  to  the  members.  One  little  pecu- 
liarity of  their  ceremonies  is  to  place  the  military  of  the  capital 
(generally  some  hundreds  of  troops)  at  the  disposal  of  the  pres- 
idents of  the  two  houses. 


CONGRESS.  257 

The  halls  are  one  enormous  room,  nearly  divided  into  two  by 
a  partition.  The  western  end,  farthest  from  the  front,  is  for  the 
Senate.  A  gallery  runs  round  the  whole  except  the  western 
end,  and  the  space  not  under  the  gallery  is  railed  off  for  the  use 
of  the  members.  Speaking  places  (tribunos),  like  pulpits,  are 
provided,  but  not  used  except  in  set  speeches.  The  north  gal- 
lery, the  east,  and  the  east  half  of  the  south  is  open  to  all,  and 
also  the  space  beneath,  so  that  the  Chamber  of  Representatives 
is  surrounded  on  three  sides  by  the  spectators.  But  the  south 
of  the  Senate  is  reserved,  and  over  the  President's  chair  there 
is  no  gallery,  so  that  the  Senate  is  exposed  to  observation  only 
on  the  north  side.  Ladies  with  tickets,  foreign  ministers,  and 
some  officials  have  access  to  the  reserved  gallery,  which  extends 
a  little  way  into  the  House  of  Representatives. 

The  spectators  are  called  the  barra.  Their  conduct  is  out- 
rageous, often  disturbing  the  proceedings  with  cries  and  insults 
against  some  of  the  members,  and  always  with  impunity.  It 
would  be  a  happy  thing  for  the  nation  if  a  new  capital  could  be 
selected  west  of  Cipaquira  or  Muzo,  where  there  could  not  be  a 
large  city.  If  that  is  impossible,  the  English  system  must  be 
resorted  to  of  admitting  to  the  House  only  by  ticket.  I  saw 
little  of  Congress,  for  the  very  reason  that  it  was  disagreeable — 
perhaps  it  is  undemocratic  to  avow  it — to  mingle  with  such  a 
rabble.  One  member,  I  was  told,  could  not  speak  without  be- 
ing taunted  with  a  petty  theft  he  had  once  been  charged  with. 

I  may  as  well  speak  here  of  the  Constitution.  That  of  1843 
was  so  long  a  document  that  I  never  had  a  chance  to  read  it ; 
it  is,  in  fact,  a  treatise  on  politics.  For  changes,  it  was  requisite 
that  one  Congress  should  pass  them,  and  that  another,  chosen 
certain  months  after  their  publication,  should  confirm  them. 
Congress  made  an  entirely  new  Constitution  in  1851,  and,  I  be- 
lieve, a  very  good  one.  It  was  not  before  1853  that  it  could 
be  sanctioned.  That  Congress  made  so  many  changes  in  it 
that  it  might  be  called  an  entirely  new  one ;  but  they  voted 
that  it  was  the  old  one,  and  that  it  was  constitutionally  adopt- 
ed. No  man,  as  I  know,  in  the  whole  nation  disputed  its  valid- 
ity, and  most  hailed  it  as  the  advent  of  "  the  true  republic" — 
a  thing  that  seems  to  all  of  them  like  a  millennium,  always  at 
hand,  but,  alas !  never  yet  seen. 

R 


258  NEW  GRANADA. 

The  crowning  defect  of  the  Constitution  of  1853  is  that  the 
executive  is  too  weak.  It  has  no  veto.  An  objected  bill  has 
but  to  pass  both  houses  a  second  time.  The  patronage  of  the 
executive  is  very  limited,  and  no  power  is  left  it  that  could  have 
been  taken  from  it. 

The  next  most  fatal  defect  is  that  the  two  houses  of  Congress 
are  not  a  sufficient  check  upon  each  other.  Six  persons  are 
voted  for  on  the  same  ballot  for  Congress.  The  highest  six  are 
elected :  the  first  is  Senador ;  the  second  and  third,  Diputados ; 
the  fourth,  Senador  suplente ;  fifth  and  sixth,  Diputados  suplen- 
tes.  All  hold  their  office  for  but  one  year.  If  the  two  houses 
disagree  on  a  bill,  they  meet  together  as  one,  and  the  majority 
carries  every  thing.  Here  is  no  element  of  stability.  The  most 
astounding  changes  are  ventured  on  with  little  hesitation,  and 
every  thing  can  be  as  easily  reversed  next  year.  Three  times 
has  the  entire  system  of  weights  and  measures  been  changed : 
that  of  the  French  has  now  been  adopted  for  the  second  time. 
Important  changes  in  the  number  of  provinces  are  made  contin- 
ually ;  new  ones  are  erected,  and  then  again  suppressed.  Each 
new  whim  of  the  nation  will  carry  in  a  Congress  that  scorns  to 
look  to  its  predecessors  for  wisdom.  Though  there  is  a  party 
called  Conservador,  the  conservative  spirit  is  entirely  unknown 
in  all  the  nation,  so  I  have  no  hopes  of  any  stability  under  the 
new  Constitution  of  1853. 

The  highest  story  of  the  great  house  in  which  Congress  meets 
has  the  Treasury  offices  at  the  northern  end.  The  Ministro  de 
Hacienda,  its  head,  Senor  Jose  Maria  Plata,  is  a  good  man,  but 
he  has  a  terrible  task.  The  treasury  is  in  a  state  of  perennial 
bankruptcy — all  the  effect  of  bad  legislation  and  revolutions. 
The  last  remedy  of  this  was  DESCENTEALIZACION.  It  was  a 
happy  idea  of  assigning  to  the  provinces  a  small  part  of  the  rev- 
enues and  a  large  part  of  the  expenses  for  them  to  manage  just 
as  they  could.  This  measure  was  called  for  because  the  nation 
is  opposed  to  all  indirect  taxation,  and  direct  taxation  by  na- 
tional officers  is  nearly  impossible  in  such  a  country. 

Of  indirect  taxes  the  first  important  one  abolished  was  the 
alcabala,  or  a  percentage  on  all  sales.  The  last  was  the  monop- 
oly of  tobacco.  Those  now  remaining  are  salt,  spirits,  stamps, 
peaje  or  toll,  and  customs.  Spirits,  and  peaje,  and  the  old  ec- 


MINT  AND  MAILS.  259 

clesiastical  taxes  of  tithes  and  first-fruits,  have  been  passed  over 
to  the  provinces ;  most  of  them  have  abolished  the  excise  on 
spirits  and  ecclesiastical  taxes. 

Senor  Plata  has  been  in  correspondence  with  me  on  coinage. 
We  find  that  the  silver  real  is  a  little  heavier  than  the  new  dime, 
while  the  gold  condor  is  somewhat  lighter  than  the  double  eagle. 
He  at  length  decided  to  recommend  the  slight  changes  necessa- 
ry to  make  our  coins  identical.  The  silver  is  now  identical  with 
that  of  France,  and  is  a  tender  for  all  sums.  Consequently,  the 
gold  is  bought  and  sold  at  varying  prices. 

The  Secretary  of  Finance  (Hacienda)  has  the  charge  of  the 
whole  matter  of  mails.  A  priori,  I  should  expect  this  to  be  the 
worst  managed  post  of  the  whole  administration.  To  my  admira- 
tion, it  is  the  best.  It  is  far  more  wisely  adapted  to  their  condi- 
tion than  ours  is  to  us  at  the  North,  and  is  not  susceptible  of  any 
radical  improvement.  Despite  of  barbarism  and  barbarous  roads, 
there  are  comparatively  few  irregularities,  and  the  losses  very 
few,  and  all  borne  by  government.  The  department  not  only 
supports  itself,  but  yields  a  revenue. 

Most  of  the  mails  are  weekly  each  way :  the  rest  are  twenty- 
six  a  year.  The  offices  are  few,  not  over  150.  The  mode  of 
conveyance  is  left  at  the  option  of  the  contractor,  but  in  many 
places  the  mail  must  always  be  carried  on  men's  shoulders.  On 
better  roads,  mules  carry  cubical  trunks,  called  balijas.  They 
are  covered  with  (tanned)  leather.  Cargas  are  not  to  exceed  220 
pounds.  Correristas  may  not  carry  things  to  traffic  in,  and  their 
bundles  are  searched  to  prevent  it.  The  Indian  is  born  a  com- 
mercial traveler,  for  within  a  few  hours  of  him  many  things  may 
vary  50  or  100  per  cent,  in  price.  Hence  this  needful  pre- 
caution. 

The  hours  of  arrival  and  leaving  every  office  are  fixed  by  de- 
cree, and  each,  post-master — Administrador  de  Correos — must 
state  the  hour  on  the  way-bill,  and  actually  see  him  off.  Their 
regulations  to  secure  suitable  correristas  are  different  from  ours. 
Theirs  permit  a  negro  to  carry  the  mail,  but  would  take  it  from 
a  drunken  man,  and  imprison  him.  Ours  are  satisfied  if  he 
is  a  white  man,  and  it  matters  less  if  he  be  drunk  or  sober. 
Indeed,  I  doubt  if  nine  tenths  of  their  carriers  would  not  be  pro- 
liibited  by  the  laws  of  our  glorious  Union  from  serving  in  that 


260  NEW  GRANADA. 

capacity,  and  yet,  incomprehensibly  enough  (I  am  ashamed  to 
admit  it),  their  department  is  served  far  better  than  ours. 

When  I  came  up  the  Magdalena  there  were  two  steam-boat 
companies  on  the  river.  In  the  Santa  Marta  Company  the  na- 
tion has  an  interest,  but  it  was  too  poor  to  buy  one  in  the  oth- 
er. A  system  of  canoes  and  bogas  for  mails  is  provided  on  the 
river  independent  of  both,  but  when  the  Santa  Marta  boats  over- 
take a  mail,  they  must  take  it  in.  The  others,  in  self-defense, 
are  obliged  to  refuse  to  do  so.  We  left  one  behind  us  so  in  the 
Barranquilla,  but  it  afterward  passed  us  as  easily  when  we  were 
in  the  champan.  The  nation  has  the  power  to  require  all  boats 
to  take  a  mail  at  a  fixed  price,  or  even  gratis,  if  it  chooses.  It 
would  do  a  real  service  to  the  country  should  it  require  fixed 
starting  days  for  at  least  one  weekly  steamer  each  way,  and  for- 
bid any  irregular  steamer  from  starting  just  in  advance  of  the 
packets.  The  uncertainty  of  meeting  boats  is  a  great  obstacle 
to  travel  here. 

One  important  peculiarity  of  the  mail  system  here  is  what 
are  called  encomiendas.  We  have  no  bank-notes,  and  if  we  re- 
mit, it  must  be  in  coin.  Gold  dust,  emeralds,  sample  cards, 
etc.,  are  sent  in  this  way,  and  once,  I  believe,  I  saw  even  a  sad- 
dle-tree thus  mailed.  I  once  sent  a  horse  by  mail — a  live  horse! 
Its  head  was  securely  tied  to  the  tail  of  the  mail-horse  at  the 
beginning  and  end  of  the  journey :  I  know  not  which  horse  car- 
ried the  balijas  the  most.  I  had  a  ruana  once  sent  by  encomi- 
enda  from  Bogota  to  Cartago.  It  is  supposed  to  have  left  Bogo- 
ta at  2  P.M.  of  Wednesday  by  mule,  and  Ibague'  at  10  A.M.  of 
Saturday  by  a  human  carrier — carguero — and  to  have  arrived 
at  Cartago  at  6  P.M.  of  Tuesday.  Travelers  rarely  pass  this 
space  in  less  than  a  fortnight. 

The  identical  coin  committed  to  encomienda  is  paid  out. 
Bills  of  exchange,  drafts,  etc.,  are  unknown.  No  fear  of  loss  is 
entertained.  Not  one  mail-robbery  per  year  occurs.  A  peon, 
wretchedly  poor,  carries  it  through  a  wilderness  where  it  is  126 
hours  from  office  to  office  (Popayan  to  Pasto) ;  an  Indian  takes 
it  125  hours' journey  to  the  next  office  (Pasto  to  Mocoa) :  both 
know  that  their  heavy  load  is  mostly  money,  but  they  neither 
think  of  robbing  or  being  robbed.  Never  mind :  they  are  bar- 
barians, and  their  very  color  would  be  a  legal  bar  in  our  happier 


NAMES.  261 

land  to  their  being  placed  in  such  temptations.  We  ought  to 
send  them  missionaries  to  Christianize  them. 

The  rates  of  postage  are  high,  and  that  is  more  excusable  in 
a  country  where  so  few  write  letters.  A  letter  from  one  place 
to  another  in  the  same  province  pays  ten  cents  per  half  ounce ; 
beyond  the  bounds  of  the  province  it  is  fifteen.  Books  under 
four  ounces,  newspapers,  seeds,  and  grafts  go  free.  The  rates 
for  encomiendas  vary  according  to  value  and  distance. 

One  word  of  advice  as  to  foreign  mails.  There  is  nominally 
a  mail  connection  at  Panama  between  the  United  States  and 
New  Granada,  and  you  can  pay  through.  Do  no  such  thing, 
unless  you  wish  to  lose  both  money  and  letter,  as  I  have  done. 
To  get  letters  to  New  Granada,  get  them  on  board  some  ship 
that  will  touch  at  a  Granadan  port,  and  let  them  be  mailed  there. 
To  get  them  from  here,  arrange  with  some  consul.  That  model 
of  a  consul,  Mr.  Sanchez,  of  Cartagena,  is  full  of  good  works  of 
this  kind  toward  entire  strangers.  I  have  been  under  similar 
obligations  to  an  unknown  consul  at  Panama ;  but  trust  not 
the  United  States  mail  at  Panama  unless  in  the  last  extremity. 
I  would  sooner  trust  the  cook  of  a  schooner  bound  to  Santa 
Marta,  Sabanilla,  or  Cartagena. 

Granadan  travelers  are  often  embarrassed  by  the  importance 
of  Christian  names — nombres — and  the  little  account  made  of 
surnames — apellidos.  Women  do  not  change  their  surname 
when  they  marry,  but  may  connect  the  husband's  to  it  by  a  de  : 
thus,  when  Senor  Barriga  married  Dolores  Fuertes,  she  became 
Dolores  Fuertes  de  Barriga.  Their  son  Jose  may  write  his 
name  simply  Jose  Barriga,  or  Jose  Barriga  Fuertes,  or  Jose  Ba- 
rriga y  Fuertes.  I  prefer  Jose*  Barriga  (Fuertes). 

In  the  letter-list  the  Christian  names  are  arranged  in  alpha- 
betical order,  and  Honorable  John  Smith  must  seek  his  name 
under  the  letter  H,  John  Smith,  Esq.,  under  J,  and  Mr.  Smith, 
under  M  and  S.  Had  he  forewarned  all  his  correspondents  to 
direct  to  Juan  Smith  invariably,  he  would  have  saved  both  him- 
self and  the  officials  much  trouble.  Directed  to  Don  Juan  el 
Ingles,  they  would  be  surer  of  reaching  him  than  by  any  possi- 
ble direction  in  a  United  States  post-office. 

The  gobernacion  of  the  province  of  Bogota  is  in  the  oppo- 
site end  of  the  Casa  Consistorial.  The  Gobernador,  Pedro  Gu- 


262  NEW  GRANADA. 

tierrez  (Lee),  is  an  intelligent,  efficient  official.  His  mother's 
name  seems  to  have  been  English.  Padre  Gutierrez,  his  fa- 
ther, is  the  excellent  Cura  of  Las  Nieves. 

Among  other  favors  due  to  the  governor  was  an  introduction 
to  the  Colegio  de  la  Merced.  The  reader  will  be  glad  to  ac- 
company me  there,  as  we  shall  find  no  other  like  it.  It  is  in 
the  extinct  and  spacious  convent  of  the  Capuchins,  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  Alameda,  just  north  of  the  Plaza  de  San  Victorino. 
I  knocked  at  the  door,  and  it  was  opened  by  the  porteress,  who 
usually  sits  on  the  floor  of  the  locutory  sewing.  She  informed 
me  that  the  order  was  not  sufficient  for  my  admission,  but  that 
it  must  be  taken  to  a  gentleman  who  is  authorized  to  admit.  I 
begged,  however,  to  see  the  directress,  and  she  conducted  me  to 
the  locutory. 

The  room  is  divided  lengthwise  by  a  fence,  and  the  door  by 
which  pupils  entered  to  see  their  visitors  was  the  other  side  of 
it.  It  was  much  too  low  to  separate  lovers,  and  too  high  by 
far  for  the  convenience  of  mammas  that  call  to  see  their  daugh- 
ters. The  directora  entered,  however,  by  the  door  from  the  hall. 
I  begged  her  to  excuse  informalities,  and  admit  me  without 
delaying  me,  and  she  cheerfully  did  so. 

I  have  often  wished  to  get  a  fair  insight  into  the  colegios  for 
boys,  and  have  never  got  farther  than  the  public  halls.  I  de- 
spair ever  seeing  any  thing  of  the  internal  life  and  domestic  ar- 
rangements of  these  institutions.  Here  I  was  taken  by  sur- 
prise :  I  was  shown  every  thing.  I  was  asked  into  every  room 
— parlors,  halls,  dormitory,  teachers'  apartments,  chapel,  bath- 
room, refectory,  garden,  and  kitchen. 

An  interesting  sight  it  was.  Not  a  room  but  had  some  curi- 
ous peculiarity,  but  all  arranged  with  the  best  intentions.  The 
whole  was  neat,  but  nothing  elegant.  Drawing  and  needle- 
work were  taught  to  excess,  but  vocal  music  not  at  all.  Their 
rigid  discipline  allows  no  girl  to  go  into  the  streets,  and  allows 
access  to  parents  with  some  difficulty.  The  pupils  were  at 
their  drawing  lessons.  They  appeared  cheerful  and  pretty.  I 
volunteered  some  suggestions,  among  which  were  to  get  the 
garden  cultivated,  to  fix  the  chimney  in  the  kitchen  so  that  it 
could  be  used,  to  pray  less,  and  sing  some.  All  of  this,  and  my 
sincere  commendations  of  the  school,  were  very  kindly  received 


SCHOOLS  OF  BOGOTA.  263 

by  the  lady  whose  politeness  and  cordiality  made  this  one  of 
my  most  delightful  calls  in  the  country. 

The  Colegio  del  Rosario  is  just  two  hundred  years  old,  hav- 
ing been  founded  in  1653  by  Archbishop  Torres.  It  is  in  the 
third  block  north  of  the  Cathedral.  I  entered  it  from  the  house 
of  the  vice-director,  on  the  north  side  of  the  block.  Here  I  saw 
a  very  old  library,  with  few  or  no  new  books,  some  very  old 
portraits,  and  one  or  two  halls.  Students  were  walking  to  and 
fro  in  the  corridors,  repeating  aloud  the  lessons  they  were  to 
recite.  They  were  an  intelligent  body  of  students,  but  very 
young.  I  heard  a  class  reciting  English  to  a  teacher  who  could 
barely  speak  it  a  little.  It  was  "  as  good  as  a  play"  to  hear 
them  make  mistakes,  and  especially  to  hear  him  correct  them. 
Ours  is  a  terribly  hard  language  for  them  to  articulate. 

I  visited  repeatedly  the  Colegio  Militar.  It  is  in  the  second 
block  south  of  the  Plaza,  with  the  entrance  on  the  east  side. 
The  school  appears  in  a  highly  creditable  condition  as  to  math- 
ematics, and  some  examinations  that  I  witnessed  there  are  wor- 
thy of  all  praise.  The  library  is  modern,  and  good  for  its  ex- 
tent, which  is  not  great. 

I  became  acquainted  with  a  French  professor  there,  named 
Bergeron,  who  is  something  of  an  enthusiast.  He  desired  to 
call  on  me  with  some  mesmeric  subjects,  by  whom  he  would  con- 
vince me  of  the  truth  of  clairvoyance.  He  came,  and  failed. 
He  is  a  believer  in  hidden  treasures,  of  course,  and  satisfied  him- 
self, by  aid  of  clairvoyance  or  otherwise,  that  an  immense  quan- 
tity lay  open  to  view  in  the  Hoyo  del  Aire.  This  is  a  terrific 
chasm,  with  perpendicular  walls,  like  the  shaft  of  a  mine.  It 
lies  14  miles  north-northeast  of  Velez,  and  five  miles  southeast 
of  Paz.  It  is  on  a  side  hill,  so  that  while  the  upper  side  is  387 
feet  deep,  the  lower  side  is  but  247.  As  the  hole  is  nearly  cir- 
cular, its  oblique  mouth  must  be  elliptical,  so  that  while  its  least 
diameter  is  285  feet,  the  longer  is  367,  and  the  circumference  is 
884  feet.  These  dimensions  I  take  from  the  estimates  of  Col- 
onel Codazzi.  As  the  breadth  of  this  well  is  just  about  equal  to 
its  depth,  there  is  no  want  of  light  or  vegetation.  In  fact,  the 
sides  are  thickly  matted  with  plants,  and  at  the  bottom  grow  re- 
spectable trees. 

Here  lay  Professor  Bergeron's  treasures,  if  there  be  any  truth 


264  NEW  GRANADA. 

in  mesmerism.  They  had  been  thrown  in  by  the  Indians,  in 
their  desperation,  to  keep  them  from  the  covetous  grasp  of  the 
Conquerors,  and  he  must  have  them.  So,  before  leaving  Bogo- 
ta, he  prepared  ropes,  windlass,  and  a  sort  of  balloon  car,  capa- 
ble of  holding  two.  He  did  not  exactly  like  the  idea  of  going 
down  there  alone.  He  selected  for  his  companion  a  worthy 
priest,  Padre  Cuervo,  who  cared  less  about  gold  than  natural 
curiosities  and  Indian  relics — a  very  rare  taste  in  a  Granadino. 
He  consented  to  share  the  danger,  the  professor  taking  entirely 
to  himself  the  expense  and  the  profits. 

But  when  they  came  there  the  Frenchman  stood  aghast.  He 
was  a  mathematician,  knew  the  depth  in  metres,  and  had  pro- 
vided the  requisite  quantity  of  rope.  But  he  had  not  provided 
the  requisite  quantity  of  courage,  for  it  was  an  enormous  hole 
to  look  at.  Even  from  the  lower  side,  247  feet  is  a  great  way 
to  swing  down  in  a  basket.  So  the  Padre  Cuervo  might  go 
down  first ;  and  he  did ;  and  he  wrote  an  encouraging  letter  and 
sent  up  to  his  patron,  but  he  could  not  venture  down.  In  fact, 
he  doubted  whether  there  were  any  treasure  down  in  such  a  hole, 
after  all. 

The  good  priest  was  in  his  glory  down  there — alone  in  his 
glory.  He  found  a  stream  running  out,  and  followed  it  for  a 
long  way  under-ground — a  dismal  region,  peopled  with  that  mys- 
terious bird,  the  guacharo.  This  is  often  supposed  to  be  a  spe- 
cies of  Caprimulgus ;  but  Padre  Cuervo  says  that  he  satisfied 
himself  that  it  lives  on  nuts,  which  it  brings  by  night  from  quite 
a  distance.  It  would,  indeed,  be  difficult  to  procure,  within 
the  few  fastnesses  in  which  they  are  known  to  live,  a  sufficiency 
of  insects  for  their  immense  population.  I  now  recollect  but 
two  other  places  where  the  guacharo  is  known  to  live :  in  the 
famous  cave  in  Venezuela  mentioned  by  Humboldt,  and  at  the 
Bridge  of  Pandi,  where  I  saw  them  and  their  nests,  but  in  a  re- 
treat far  more  difficult  of  access  than  this.  The  name  of  this 
remarkable  bird  is  Steatornis  Caripensis. 

Bergeron  was  a  little  disappointed  with  the  results  of  this  ex- 
pedition, but  the  good-natured  priest,  though  not  a  little  elated 
with  his  success,  had  the  consideration  not  to  publish  his  ac- 
count of  the  expedition  till  the  professor  had  returned  to  France. 

Professor  Bergeron  accompanied  me  to  the  Observatory,  which 


OBSERVATOKY.  265 

is  in  the  rear  of  the  Colegio  Militar.  It  is  the  oldest  in  the  New 
World.  It  is  at  the  lowest  latitude  and  the  highest  altitude  of 
any  in  the  world,  and  yet  even  astronomers  know  little  of  it. 
A  good  account  of  it  is  found  in  the  Semanario  Granadino,  page 
44,  of  the  Paris  edition  of  1849.  I  extract  some  particulars 
from  it.  It  was  commenced  by  Mutis  24th  May,  1802,  and 
finished  20th  August,  1803.  It  is  an  octagonal  tower,  24.6 
feet  of  internal  diameter,  and  51  feet  high.  It  has  two  stories, 
the  upper  of  which  is  24  feet  high,  and  has  in  the  ceiling  an  open- 
ing to  let  a  ray  of  the  sun  at  noon  fall  on  a  meridional  line  on 
the  floor  below.  A  smaller  tower,  clinging  to  the  southwest  side 
of  it,  and  rising  16  feet  above  it,  contains  the  staircase  and  a 
small  observer's  room.  It  was  furnished  with  good  instruments 
at  that  date,  such  as  the  Graham  clock  used  by  Condamine,  ' 
seven  Dollond  telescopes  (no  grand  one),  and  an  18-inch  quad- 
rant of  Bird.  The  clock  and  the  quadrant,  and  some  other  in- 
struments, are  still  in  the  museum,  but  many  of  the  instruments 
have  been  destroyed  in  one  of  the  civil  wars  by  soldiers,  who 
took  the  Observatory  to  be  a  fortress,  from  some  images  of  can- 
non that  the  fancy  of  the  architect  chose  to  put  upon  the  upper 
story. 

A  pluviometer  in  the  garden  adjoining  was  all  the  apparatus 
near ;  the  building  was  absolutely  empty.  Why  will  not  sci- 
ence again  take  possession  of  this  favored  post,  and  remodel  it 
according  to  the  present  state  of  observation  ?  No  habitable 
spot  has  a  more  brilliant  sky  or  a  rarer  atmosphere.  The  finan- 
cial condition  of  the  nation  forbids  them  even  to  think  of  im- 
proving it,  but  there  is  nothing  that  they  would  not  willingly  do 
to  aid  others  in  enriching  science  by  means  of  it. 

It  would  be  injustice  to  leave  this  memorable  spot  without  re- 
counting briefly  the  history  of  the  first  and  only  astronomer  who 
ever  resided  in  it.  "  y 

Francisco  Jose  de  Caldas  (Tenorio)  was  born  in  Popayan  in 
1771,  finished  a  course  of  law  studies  in  Bogota  in  1793,  en- 
tered on  mercantile  pursuits,  and  failed.  He  then  gave  way 
to  his  natural  bent,  made  him  instruments  as  he  could,  such  as 
telescope,  quadrant,  &c.  An  attempt  to  mend  a  broken  ther- 
mometer, and  construct  a  new  scale  by  boiling  water,  at  Popa- 
yan, gave  him,  in  1799  or  1800,  the  idea  of  ascertaining  altitudes 


266  NEW  GRANADA. 

by  the  variation  of  the  boiling-point,  an  invention  which  has  not 
been  duly  credited  to  him  in  books.  In  1802  he  became  a 
member  of  the  Botanical  Expedition  under  Mutis.  In  1806, 
Caldas  became  the  first  astronomer  in  the  Observatory  of  Bo- 
gota. The  previous  years  had  been  spent  in  perfecting  the  ge- 
ography and  botany  of  his  country.  On  the  3d  January,  1808, 
he  commenced  a  scientific  weekly  journal,  El  Semanario  Grana- 
dino,  which  continued  for  two  years.  It  was  republished  in  Par- 
is in  1849,  edited  by  Colonel  Joaquin  Acosta,  and  improved  by 
the  suppression  of  some  temporary  matter. 

And  now  began  the  long  and  terrible  War  of  Independence, 
and  Caldas  left  his  observatory  and  his  science,  first  to  edit  a 
revolutionary  paper,  then  to  serve  as  the  chief  of  a  company  of 
engineers.  In  1813,  '14,  and  '15,  we  find  him  in  Antioquia, 
planning  fortifications,  casting  cannon,  making  powder,  teach- 
ing engineering,  and  serving  the  revolution  by  every  faculty. 
In  1815  he  returned  again  to  his  old  work  of  inciting  rebellion 
through  the  press  at  Bogota;  but  when  the  Spanish  General 
Latorre  entered  Bogota,  6th  May,  1816,  Caldas  fled  to  Popayan, 
where,  after  the  battle  of  Tambo,  on  29th  June,  1816,  he  was 
seized,  and  condemned  to  die.  Now  he  turned  to  supplicate  the 
butcher  Morillo,  not  for  himself,  but  for  science.  He  asked  only 
that  he  might  live  in  the  closest  prison,  on  the  hardest  fare,  with 
a  chain  on  his  ankle,  till  he  had  arranged  his  papers  for  publica- 
tion. In  vain.  The  Vandal  wished  to  destroy  them  more  than 
him.  In  the  Pacificador,  in  Colonel  Pineda's  collection,  we  read: 
"  Oct.  29th,  Dr.  Francisco  Caldas,  Engineer  General  and  Brig- 
adier General  in  the  rebel  army,  was  shot  in  the  back,  and  his 
property  confiscated."  He  was  only  45. 

Thus  died,  nobly  and  honorably,  the  wisest  and  perhaps  the 
best  man  that  South  America  has  ever  produced — the  Grana- 
dan  Franklin — for  he  resembled  Franklin  in  many  respects, 
only  he  was  more  highly  honored ;  for  he  not  only  risked  his 
life  for  his  country  in  the  field,  but  died  for  her  on  the  ban- 
quillo.  Other  scientific  men,  not  so  eminent,  shared  his  fate. 
Among  them  were  the  botanist  Lozano,  and  the  chemist  Jose 
Maria  Cabal.  Indeed,  so  terrible  was  the  cruelty  of  this  wretch, 
that,  in  looking  over  the  portraits  in  a  gallery  of  the  Colegio 
del  Rosario,  it  appeared  as  if  one  half  had  been  murdered  in  cold 


COLEGIO  MILITAR.  267 

blood,  and  of  the  remainder,  some  had  died  in  battle,  some  had 
been  sought  in  vain  for  slaughter,  and  one  who  had  been  caught 
was  spared^  thus  fixing  a  sort  of  stigma  on  his  reputation,  as  if 
he  was  not  worth  butchering. 

With  sad  and  angry  feelings  I  turned  from  the  garden,  over- 
grown with  weeds,  into  the  paved  patio  of  the  Colegio  Militar. 
And  here  I  am  reminded  of  a  later  occurrence,  which  I  think 
illustrates  the  fanatical  hatred  of  the  Golgotas  to  the  army  and 
all  concerned  with  it.  Our  own  West  Point  has  to  run  an  an- 
nual gauntlet,  though  we  have  no  Congressmen  that  aim  at  the 
entire  abolition  of  the  army.  Here  those  who  are  entirely  op- 
posed to  the  army,  added  to  those  who  wish  to  weaken  and  em- 
barrass the  present  administration,  are  never  much  short  of  a 
majority.  Well,  it  seems  that  one  day  some  one  mingled  with 
the  dulce  of  the  dinner  a  quantity  of  tartar  emetic  so  large  that 
it  could  hardly  have  been  sold  innocently  by  any  druggist  in 
the  interior.  No  life  was  lost,  but  a  terrible  scene  was  the  con- 
sequence. One  student  only  had  not  partaken  of  it,  and,  from 
the  customs  of  the  country,  no  one  would  be  likely  to  take  a 
double  quantity  of  dulce.  The  whole  city  was  in  alarm,  for 
there  is  no  respectable  family  but  has  some  friends  in  the  Co- 
legio. The  President  had  a  son  there.  All  were  at  once  re- 
moved to  the  houses  of  parents  and  friends,  and  the  scanty 
medical  knowledge  of  the  city  was  all  put  in  requisition.  The 
author  of  the  deed,  who,  we  hope,  knew  not  the  danger  of  it, 
never  was  discovered. 

In  the  by-laws  of  the  Colegio  Militar  I  find  a  peculiar  and 
significant  regulation  about  sickness :  "  Cases  of  serious  sick- 
ness shall  be  removed  to  the  officers'  ward  of  the  Military  Hos- 
pital, and  treated  at  the  public  expense ;  but  if  the  disease 
proves  to  be  *  el  galico,'  the  patient  shall  be  removed  to  the 
wards  of  common  soldiers,  and  after  his  return  to  the  Colegio 
he  shall  not  leave  the  premises  unaccompanied  by  an  officer  of 
the  school  for  one  year." 

There  is,  or  rather  was,  another  national  colegio  here,  that  of 
San  Bartolome.  The  embarrassments  of  the  treasury  have  led 
to  its  relinquishment.  It  was  not  needed,  as  the  Colegio  del 
E-osario  is  a  provincial  establishment.  Another  establishment 
is  the  Semanario  Conciliar,  a  school  for  the  training  of  priests. 


268  NEW  GRANADA. 

I  am  under  the  impression  that  the  locality,  if  not  the  appara- 
tus of  this,  has  been  rather  unfairly  seized  upon  by  government, 
in  the  belief  that  it  was  useless  to  community.  It  seems  to 
me  that  there  is  no  present  lack  of  priests,  unless  it  be  among 
the  Indians,  where,  indeed,  a  large  number  of  good  missionaries 
could  find  enough  to  do. 

Some  attempts  are  made  to  encourage  the  sciences,  and  a 
good  laboratory  has  been  established  here  at  the  expense  of  the 
nation.  I  attempted  to  visit  it,  but  could  find  no  time  at  once 
convenient  to  myself  and  those  who  had  charge  of  it.  M.  Lewy 
came  out  from  Paris  to  teach  here,  but  he  became  discouraged 
and  returned.  Public  taste  does  not  run  to  material  facts. 

Greek  and  Hebrew  are,  I  believe,  unknown  here.  I  know  of 
no  works  in  Spanish  to  facilitate  the  study  of  either ;  nor  have 
I  met  a  single  book  in  or  on  either  of  these  languages  in  the 
country,  unless  it  be  in  the  rare  library  of  Dr.  Merizalde.  In 
the  same  way,  agriculture,  mining,  geology,  practical  mechanics, 
are  yet  to  have  their  beginnings  as  studies. 

I  visited  two  common  schools,  one  of  each  sex.  That  for 
girls  is  the  poorest  girls'  school  I  have  seen,  while  that  for  boys 
was  not  much  better,  poorer  than  any  other  girls'  school,  but 
about  equal  to  the  average  of  boys'  schools.  The  pedagogic 
profession  is  not  respectable  in  New  Granada.  It  would  be  well 
to  require  from  candidates  for  certain  offices  that  they  shall  have 
taught  an  entire  year  in  the  same  common  school.  Should  this 
be  required  before  gaining  a  doctor's  degree,  for  instance,  quite 
a  different  class  of  talent  would  be  called  into  these  schools. 

In  the  southeast  corner  of  the  city,  or  just  out  of  it,  is  one  es- 
tablishment, however,  that  does  credit  to  Granadan  perseverance 
and  talent.  It  is  the  pottery  of  Don  Nicolas  Leiva.  To  un- 
derstand the  difficulties  he  has  contended  with,  you  must  know 
something  of  native  character,  and  especially  its  aversion  to 
steady  labor.  In  entire  provinces  you  can  not  find  one  man 
who  has  ever  wrought  faithfully  all  the  working  days  of  an  en- 
tire month ;  and  yet  this  pottery  would  do  credit  to  the  United 
States.  Among  the  uncommon  articles  made  here  are  porcelain 
mortars  and  pestles,  and  those  Venetian  shades  that  exhibit  soft 
and  delicate  figures  by  transmitted  light.  In  one  of  these  Senor 
Leiva  had  achieved  a  very  good  likeness  of  himself.  I  am  un- 


MANUFACTOBIES  AT  BOGOTA.  269 

der  particular  obligations  to  the  attentive  and  persevering  pro- 
prietor. 

The  glass  enterprise  had  a  much  more  natural  termination. 
Of  all  bipeds,  perhaps  the  most  unmanageable  is  the  glass-blow- 
er. To  succeed  here,  a  glass  manufactory  would  need  special 
laws,  giving  the  director  all  power  short  of  life  or  death  for  the 
space  often  years  after  the  enlistment  of  the  operative.  But  so 
limited  is  the  demand  for  glass,  that  it  would  be  better  not  at- 
tempt to  make  it  here  again  for  a  few  hundred  years  to  come. 

The  cotton  factory  and  the  paper-mill,  the  quinine  works  and 
the  foundry,  have  all  failed.  I  attribute  most  of  the  failures  to 
the  same  cause — the  want  of  suitable  operatives.  Even  now 
vast  quantities  of  rags — a  perfect  mine  of  them — are  to  be  seen 
on  the  borders  of  the  San  Francisco.  .  The  quinine  works  man- 
ufactured only  the  crude  alkaloid,  which  the  European  manu- 
facturers are  said  to  have  finally  decided  not  to  buy,  lest  it 
should  ruin  some  parts  of  their  own  business ;  so  the  San  Fran- 
cisco, as  it  hurries  down  from  the  Boqueron,  can  find  nothing  to 
do  but  turn  two  common  grist-mills,  which,  though  they  never 
grind  maize,  would  not,  in  the  North,  be  thought  suitable  for 
wheat. 

The  key  to  all  this  is  a  want  of  education  in  the  masses. 
They  are  tolerant  of  hunger :  of  comforts  they  know  nothing, 
and  desire  none.  Their  morals  can  sink  no  lower,  and  their 
religion  can  raise  them  no  higher.  Their  beau  ideal  is  to  escape 
hunger,  to  keep  dry  from  the  rain,  and  to  be  free  from  labor  and 
care.  They  pay  no  taxes,  beg  when  they  can,  and  earn  noth- 
ing except  in  case  of  extreme  emergency,  but  in  such  case  they 
will  submit  to  any  thing.  Once  they  had  the  Hospicio  fitted 
up  as  a  work-house,  but  such  a  thing  can  only  be  kept  up  so 
long  as  some  man  shall  make  it  his  hobby :  it  is  all  run  down, 
and  is  become  a  beggars'  nest.  Even  prostitution  would  not  be 
likely  to  be  a  gainful  course,  wars  have  carried  off  so  many  of 
the  one  sex,  and  the  low  masses  of  the  other  are  so  abject. 
Poor  Bogota ! 

With  some  remarks  on  the  weather,  I  now  take  my  leave  of 
the  capital,  to  return  but  once,  on  a  special  occasion.  Mosquera 
supposes  that  the  city  is  8655.5  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea. 
Quite  possibly  it  is  rather  higher.  I  would  put  the  lowest 


270  NEW  GRANADA. 

point  on  the  plain,  at  the  marshes,  at  8650  feet.  The  latitude 
was  estimated  by  Caldas  at  4°  36'  12",  and  the  longitude  at 
60°  32'  14"  west  of  the  Isle  of  Leon,  equal,  it  is  supposed,  to 
74°  14'  15"  west  of  Greenwich.  Boussingault  estimates  the 
mean  temperature  at  58° ;  Caldas  supposed  it  higher,  and  so 
have  most  others  ;  but  I  think  with  Mosquera  that  59°  is  near- 
ly right.  January  and  Jurie  seem  to  be  the  coldest  months. 
The  wettest  months  are  called  spring  and  fall  months  in  the 
United  States.  The  barometer  and  thermometer  have  both 
quite  a  narrow  range.  One  terrible  morning  at  sunrise  the 
thermometer  is  said  to  have  been  down  to  44.6°.  This  was 
the  9th  of  May,  1834,  and  the  witness  is  Colonel  Acosta. 
Judge  the  domestic  comforts  on  that  morning  of  families  that 
have  never  warmed  themselves  by  a  fire ;  and  I  really  be- 
lieve no  man  ever  learned  to  do  so  in  New  Granada  except  in 
the  house  of  some  foreigner.  I  never  knew  of  artificial  warmth 
in  any  other  house  than  that  of  Madama  Carrol.  On  another 
occasion  I  heard  of  it  down  to  46.4°  ;  but  such  events  are  as 
rare  as  earthquakes.  So,  too,  the  thermometer  has  been  up  to 
68°  in  the  shade,  26th  of  February,  1808,  the  hottest  day  on 
record.  The  natural  range  ought  to  be  put  at  from  55°,  the 
very  lowest,  up  to  66°.  Persons  used  to  this  like  it ;  but,  if 
you  are  too  cold,  just  step  out  into  the  sun,  and  you  are  sure 
to  suffer  with  the  heat. 

As  to  moisture,  Bogota  has  essentially  a  dry  climate.  They 
use  pepper-boxes  for  salt,  and,  in  ordinary  weather,  without  dif- 
ficulty ;  while  at  Honda  salt  needs  to  be  spread  with  a  knife, 
as  butter  is  at  the  North ;  but  for  all  this,  there  are  sufficiently 
numerous  rainy  days  here  in  the  course  of  a  year.  It  is  diffi- 
cult to  know  the  precise  number,  as  some  would  count  it  a 
shower  when  the  rain  did  not  wet  the  entire  surface  of  a  flat 
stone,  while  others  would  not  unless  it  really  rained  so  as  to 
detain  a  person  in-doors.  I  count  very  small  showers  as  such 
in  the  first  six  months,  when  I  estimate  the  rainy  days  of  each 
month  as  follows  :  January,  8 ;  February,  9 ;  March,  20 ;  April, 
18  ;  May,  20 ;  June,  10  ;  July,  3  ;  August,  4 ;  September,  5 ; 
October,  6 ;  November,  8 ;  December,  10.  This  makes  121 
days  in  the  year  in  each  of  which  it  rains  some,  or  almost  ex- 
actly one  day  in  three ;  and  yet,  I  think,  in  the  last  half  of  the- 


METEOROLOGY  OF  BOGOTA.  271 

year,  all  the  lesser  rains  were  omitted.  Still,  the  rainy  days 
must  be  less  than  half  the  whole.  Now  how  many  of  these  are 
respectable  showers  ?  About  one  in  five  of  the  first  six  months, 
and  nearly  half  the  others.  In  1808  there  were  ten  days  in  the 
first  six  months  in  each  of  which  there  fell  from  two  thirds  of 
an  inch  to  an  inch  and  three  fourths.  I  can  find  no  good  data 
for  an  estimate  of  the  quantity  of  rain  that  falls  annually,  but, 
from  a  careful  use  of  those  I  have,  I  make  the  quantity  very 
near  fifty  English  inches,  probably  a  little  less,  ad 

As  to  the  time  of  day  that  rain  falls,  it  is  rarely  in  the  morn- 
ing. All  through  the  rainy  season  you  make  your  calculations 
with  as  much  security  as  in  the  finest  climates  in  the  world,  only 
you  take  it  for  granted  that  it  will  rain  in  the  afternoon.  Thun- 
der is  moderate  in  quantity,  and  of  rather  inferior  quality,  being 
quite  tame  compared  with  our  best  specimens  in  the  Northern 
States,  and  perfectly  contemptible  beside  the  ordinary  run  in  the 
Southern  States.  To  match  that,  you  must  go  to  Choco.  With 
thunder  often  comes  hail,  and  rarely  in  immense  quantities.  I 
think  half  the  hail  I  ever  saw  fell  in  one  day  on  the  plain  of 
Bogota.  It  is  no  meteorological  mystery  that  heavy  falls  of 
hail  are  always  succeeded  by  ice-cream  parties,  and  that  these 
never  occur  at  any  other  time. 

Frost,  I  imagine,  visits  the  top  of  Guadalupe  frequently,  but 
on  the  plain  it  is  rare.  It  requires  a  succession  of  cloudy  days 
and  clear  nights.  I  have  noticed  things  bitten  by  it  once  only. 
It  has  far  greater  power  here  in  a  still  night  from  the  rarity  of 
the  air.  The  sky  assumes  a  deep  blue  unknown  to  lower  re- 
gions, and  all  the  dense  clouds  lie  lower  down.  I  have  been 
able  to  read  by  moonlight  even  when  I  could  not  see  in  what 
part  of  the  sky  the  moon  was.  From  the  same  reason,  the  wind 
has  less  power.  As  it  weighs  only  about  two  thirds  as  much 
per  cubic  foot,  the  momentum  is  proportionably  less  in  a  gale  of 
the  same  velocity.  It  is  curious  to  see  the  air  escape  from  a 
bottle  corked  at  a  lower  altitude.  In  short,  the  difference  strikes 
you  in  various  ways,  as  the  temperature  of  boiling  water  (195°), 
and  its  action  on  food,  on  cooking,  and,  above  all,  on  the  lungs 
of  persons  who  have  been  born  here,  and  can  never  live  content- 
edly below. 


272  NEW  GEANADA. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

THE   FALLS  OF  TEQUENDAMA. 

Leaving  Bogota. — Mule-hunting.  —  Soacha. — Agriculture  at  Tequendama. — 
Course  of  the  River. — Description  of  the  Falls. — Comparison  of  Cataracts. — 
Photographic  View. — Mist  Theory. — Tree-ferns. — Haciendas  of  Cincha  and 
Tequendama. — Saw-mill  and  Quinine  Factory. — Sabbath  Reading. 

Two  months  had  my  trunks  rested  quietly  in  Bogota,  while 
their  owner  became  acclimated,  and  learned  something  of  the 
ways  of  the  Andine  world.  I  now  determined  to  visit  the  two 
most  stupendous  works  of  nature  in  this  region,  the  Falls  (Salto) 
of  Tequendama  and  the  Bridge  of  Pandi.  Most  visitors  at  the 
fells  spend  only  an  hour  there.  Tljey  ride  there  from  Bogota, 
and  return  the  same  day ;  or  leave  Bogota  in  the  afternoon,  spend 
an  uncomfortable  night  in  the  village  of  Soacha,  or  are  guests 
at  the  hacienda  of  Canoas,  take  a  picnic  breakfast  at  the  falls, 
and  then  return.  This  last  is  generally  a  good  plan,  but  I  wish- 
ed to  spend  more  time  there,  and  therefore  availed  myself  of  the 
permission  of  Senor  Manuel  Umana  to  make  the  hacienda  of 
Tequendama  my  home  for  a  few  days. 

Now  came  the  inevitable  trouble  of  the  Andine  traveler — to 
find  cattle.  I  was  not  aware  that  a  good  carriage-road  ran  to 
the  very  head  of  the  falls,  and  that  a  return  coal-cart  might  be 
found  in  which  my  trunks  could  be  deposited  without  that  care- 
ful packing  and  equalizing  necessary  in  mule-travel.  After  I 
had  lost  one  day  in  trying  to  find  mules,  the  kind  Senora  Toma- 
sa  engaged  two  carga  mules,  a  saddle-horse,  and  a  peon  from 
Soacha.  They  came,  of  course,  later  than  promised,  and,  after 
taking  leave  of  my  disinterestedly  kind  friends,  I  was  soon  alone 
on  the  vast  Sabana,  leaving  my  cargas  and  peon  to  follow. 

Two  months'  daily  rain  had  made  less  difference  than  I  had 
expected.  The  color  had  improved,  but  was  not  as  beautiful  as 
our  spring  spreads  over  fields  long  covered  with  snow.  The 
road  was  a  carriage-road,  but  not  so  remarkably  good  as  that 
toward  Honda.  As  I  journeyed  south,  the  hills  were  never  far 


SOACHA.  273 

distant  On  my  left.  A  mile  or  two  south  of  the  city,  a  young 
gentleman,  whom  I  had  never  seen  before,  overtook  me  on  the 
road,  and  continued  some  way  past  his  destination  to  a  substan- 
tial bridge  across  the  Fucha,  when  he  took  a  polite  leave  and 
returned. 

Three  hours'  easy  riding  brought  me  to  Soacha,  famous  for 
the  bones  of  carnivorous  elephants  once  exhumed  here.  It  is  a 
small,  scattered  village,  in  a  district  of  2918  inhabitants.  My 
mules  were  owned  here,  and  I  stopped  a  moment  and  paid  for 
them.  Leaving  Soacha,  I  found  myself  on  an  arm  of  the  plain, 
having  on  my  right  two  ridges  of  hill.  Between  them,  rising 
mist  marked  the  falls.  Disregarding  this,  I  had  still  to  pursue 
my  way  to  the  south,  till,  after  a  mile  or  two,  I  entered  the 
great  gate  of  the  plantation,  and  took  a  course  more  consonant 
with  my  wishes. 

Several  small  plows,  without  mould-boards,  such  as  you  find 
in  the  Bible  Dictionary,  were  scratching  up  the  rich  black  soil, 
and  some  men  were  laying  a  stone  wall,  substantial  enough  for 
the  foundation  of  a  house.  Before  me  was  the  mansion,  now 
deserted  of  the  family ;  and  hid  in  a  hollow  by  its  side  were  a 
saw-mill,  the  houses  of  some  dependent  families,  and  a  quinine 
factory. 

The  director,  M.  Louis  Godin,  an  intelligent  French  chemist, 
was  domiciled,  I  was  told,  with  a  countrywoman  of  mine.  I 
found  her  of  pure  African  blood,  and  a  very  favorable  specimen 
of  her  race.  She  bore  in  youth  the  name  of  Joanna  Jackson, 
and  thirteen  years  ago  had  a  mother  living  in  Haverstraw,  to 
whom  she  said  she  would  gladly  send  a  hundred  or  two  of  dol- 
lars if  she  knew  she  was  living.  She  said  that  when  she  left 
the  people  were  talking  of  voting  for  General  Jackson  and  Mr. 
Van  Buren,  but  she  conjectures  the  general  must  be  dead  by  this 
time.  In  the  interim  she  has  been  over  Ireland,  England,  Ger- 
many, and  Russia,  as  a  servant,  and  is  now  a  lady  in  New  Gran- 
ada, and  has  her  white  servant.  Of  the  two  persons  who  can 
make  quinine  on  a  large  scale  in  New  Granada,  she  is  one. 

At  length  my  baggage  arrived,  and  the  large  parlor  of  the 
mansion  was  thrown  open  to  its  reception.  The  patio  of  tho 
house  is  very  large,  and  the  buildings  are  of  but  one  story  on 
three  sides,  while  there  is  a  second  story  in  front,  nearly  all  of 

S 


274  NEW  GRANADA. 

which  is  occupied  by  the  sala  or  parlor.  The  room  contained 
four  sofas,  a  dozen  chairs,  and  three  tables.  A  comfortable  mat 
bed  was  thrown  on  the  floor,  in  a  corner,  and,  after  taking  a 
child's  toy-mug  full  of  chocolate,  with  bread  and  sweetmeats  for 
my  dinner,  I  was  left  to  repose. 

After  an  early  cup  of  chocolate  in  the  morning  I  sallied  forth. 
To  understand  my  course,  you  must  understand  that  of  the  river. 
It  had  been  creeping  along  the  plain  at  my  right,  altogether  un- 
suspected by  me,  till  I  reached  the  hacienda.  There  I  found  it 
entering  a  narrow  gorge  of  the  basin  rim  of  the  plain  of  Bogota, 
where  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  dam  would  again  convert  the  plain, 
as  it  has  been  in  former  ages,  into  a  lake  as  large  as  Lake  Cham- 
plain.  It  had  approached  the  gorge  by  a  course  for  many  miles 
of  almost  exactly  south  (south  7°  W.).  Here  the  little  mill- 
stream,  coming  from  the  arm  of  the  plain,  mingles  its  dark  wa- 
ters with  the  yellow  tide  of  the  Bogota,  and  they  at  that  instant 
enter  the  gorge.  Now  is  heard,  for  the  first  time  in  its  course, 
the  murmuring  of  the  Bogota.  With  its  character  it  changes 
its  course.  For  half  a  mile  it  flows  almost  west  (S.  78°  W.). 
Again  it  makes  another  turn,  and  for  perhaps  2|  miles  N.W. 
(N.  36°  W.).  Here,  as  it  enters  the  forest,  it  takes  another  turn 
almost  north  (17°  W.),  so  that,  after  doubling  the  hill,  it  flows 
almost  in  the  contrary  direction  to  that  it  had  in  the  plain. 

At  the  gorge  it  has  already  fallen  below  the  surface  of  the 
plain,  perhaps  30  feet,  and  seems  to  have  been  struggling  vainly 
with  its  destiny,  for  a  straight  line  of  a  mile  cuts  its  bed  eight 
times.  The  road  I  took  along  its  bank  rises  over  the  first  point 
of  the  hill,  giving  a  fine  view  of  the  plain ;  then  we  descend  to 
where  the  river,  after  a  moment's  respite,  is  again  roaring  and 
plunging  at  our  right.  Ah,  poor  river!  that  yesterday  flowed 
softly  between  banks  of  green,  now  chafing  with  rugged  cliffs 
and  huge  boulders,  hasten  on  to  thy  doom. 

Our  road  is  still  a  carriage-road.  We  open  gates  and  pass 
bars  till  we  lose  sight  of  the  river  as  we  enter  the  forest.  The 
road  now  explains  itself.  In  the  ledge  on  the  left  is  a  stratum 
of  coal  nearly  two  feet  thick  and  of  good  quality,  on  this  side  of 
the  river.  Still  nothing  is  seen  of  the  cataract  till  we  are  even 
past  it,  when  the  river  is  seen  pouring  down  into  a  gulf  that 
yawns  among  the  trees.  It  is  near  us ;  but  to  descend  is  no 


FALLS  OF  TEQUENDAMA.  275 

small  task.  Take  your  machete,  and  proceed  with  caution. 
Avoid  five  things :  do  not  cut  in  such  a  direction  that,  when  your 
machete  has  cut  a  vine,  it  shall  terminate  its  course  in  your 
thigh ;  neither  let  your  left  hand  intervene  between  the  How 
and  the  object ;  do  not  fall  upon  your  machete,  nor  against  a 
stick  that  you  have  just  sharpened  by  an  oblique  cut,  neither 
cut  a  bent  shrub  when  it  can  retort  the  compliment  by  knocking 
you  over  in  straightening.  The  Spanish  term  for  this  labor  is 
romper  tnonte  (to  break  thicket). 

But  the  snakes !  the  deadly  snakes  of  South  America !  I  had 
not  thus  far  seen  a  live  one,  and  but  one  dead  one.  With  noth- 
ing on  my  feet  but  alpargates,  I  therefore  fearlessly  ventured 
on.  I  made  my  own  road,  as  the  guide  I  reluctantly  received 
from  Dr.  Umana  knew  not  the  way,  and  it  was  easier  to  make 
a  new  path  than  find  the  old  one. 

At  length  we  are  upon  the  brink  of  an  immense  chasm,  and  we 
will  pause  to  describe  it.  Writers  tell  us  it  has  the  appearance  of 
a  work  of  art.  We  gather  from  their  descriptions  that  it  is  like 
an  immense  dry  dock,  the  bottom  of  which  is  seldom  visible  from 
the  top ;  open  at  the  lower  end,  while  down  the  perpendicular  side 
of  the  upper  rushes  a  river.  Now  you  must  be  informed  that 
the  descriptions  are  made  from  the  opposite  bank,  where  a  public 
road  leads  down  to  the  brink.  From  that  side  a  front  view  is  im- 
possible ;  for  the  fall  is  not  at  the  end,  but  at  a  corner  of  the  par- 
allelogram, and  to  them  only  the  side  adjacent  is  accessible.  The 
fall  is  too  nearly  in  a  line  with  their  side,  which  runs  N.  19°  W., 
while  across  the  fall  is  N.  27°  E.,  a  difference  of  direction  of 
only  46  degrees,  or  about  half  a  right  angle.  Further,  because 
their  side  is  straight  they  imagine  ours  to  be,  but  a  side  view 
of  ours  shows  great  indentations  and  projections.  Neither  are 
the  sides  parallel,  for  they  approach  at  the  lower  end,  not  only 
optically,  but  really.  The  bottom,  too,  is  clearly  visible,  all  ex- 
cept where  the  fall  strikes,  where  it  is  covered,  of  course,  with  a 
perpetual  mist.  On  their  side  an  inclined  plane  of  debris  ex- 
tends, in  some  places,  two  thirds  the  height.  On  ours  there  is  a 
shelf  beneath  us,  on  which  you  see  some  tree-ferns  growing. 
On  their  side  they  think  the  debris  extends  up  but  a  little  way. 
and  our  ledge  they  scarcely  see ;  hence  it  appears  much  more 
regular  there  than  here.  The  strata  here  dip  four  or  five  degrees 


276  NEW   GRANADA. 

to  the  south,  and  as  the  walls  are  probably  at  right  angles  to 
them,  theirs  must  overhang  a  little :  hence  more  debris  on  that 
side,  as  fragments  are  more  liable  to  fall. 

But  notice  one  peculiarity  of  the  Salto,  which  gives  it  its  char- 
acter, and  adds  to  and  subtracts  from  its  beauty.  The  fall  is 
not  a  clear  fall.  The  water  falls  smoothly  for  27  feet  8  inches, 
and  here,  striking  on  a  ledge,  the  sheet  is  dashed  almost  into 
foam,  and  accomplishes  the  remainder  of  its  journey  more  like 
spray  hurled  downward  by  irregular  violence  than  a  fluid  under 
the  influence  of  gravitation.  Its  irregular  and  constantly  vary- 
ing outline  reminds  us  of  a  column  of  smoke  or  steam,  but  as 
this  motion  is  violent  and  angular,  while  that  is  slow  and  grace- 
ful, a  comparison  between  them  can  only  be  justified  for  want 
of  a  better.  Cones  of  spray  here  and  there  seem  to  shoot  out 
suddenly  in  advance  of  a  falling  mass,  but  are  soon  overtaken 
and  absorbed  by  the  body  from  which  they  sprung.  These 
cones  must  be  masses  of  water  not  yet  broken  up,  that  are  car- 
ried by  their  momentum  out  of  the  body  of  spray  that  falls  more 
slowly.  Here  the  resistance  of  the  air  breaks  them  up  into 
drops,  and  they  are  lost  in  the  mass  to  which  they  are  now  as- 
.similated. 

A  rainbow  hangs  over  the  falls  when  the  position  of  the  sun 
permits.  It  is  varying  every  instant;  for  where  now  it  is  bright- 
est, an  instant  hence  there  may  be  no  mist,  or  there  may  be  a 
mass  of  water  too  irregular  to  form  a  rainbow.  The  point  where 
these  observations  are  best  made  is  a  sort  of  table  rock  just  at 
the  brink  of  the  water.  Another  rock  overhangs  it,  covered 
with  Thibaudias,  ferns,  and  orchid  plants,  making  almost  a  grot- 
to for  the  observer. 

We  must  not  forget  that  this  is  now  just  the  close  of  winter, 
and  consequently,  in  the  three  months  of  summer  which  follow, 
the  stream,  now  too  small  in  volume  for  the  mighty  proportions 
of  the  gulf,  must  grow  smaller  and  smaller.  One  observer  grave- 
ly declares  that  the  whole  is  dissipated  in  mist  before  reaching 
the  bottom. 

Of  the  depth  you  can  judge  nothing.  It  does  not  look  much, 
if  any,  deeper  than  Niagara,  but  it  is  almost  exactly  three  times 
as  deep.  It  is  difficult  either  to  see  or  hear  a  stone  fall  to  the 
bottom ;  but,  throw  it  as  you  will,  it  seems  to  come  in  toward  the 


CATARACTS.  277 

ledge  as  it  descends,  and  is  in  a  fair  way  to  strike  exactly  be- 
neath your  feet.  The  reason  for  this  optical  illusion  is  well 
known.  The  course  of  the  stone  soon  becomes  parallel  with  the 
perpendicular  wall,  and  as  both  recede  from  you,  the  principle  of 
foreshortening  seems  to  bring  them  almost  together. 

Various  estimates  of  the  depth  have  been  formed,  some  ex- 
tending even  to  "half  a  league."  Other  estimates  in  order  of 
time  are  as  follows  : 

Miitis  (barometer) 698  Caldas  (dropping) 602 

Ezquiaqui  (measure) 724  Gros  (measure) 479.425 

Humboldt's  MSS.  (dropping)  .  581  Cuervo      "        417.3 

"          Published  account  600 

The  measure  of  Baron  Gros  appears  to  be  unquestionably  ac- 
curate. Acosta  gives  the  same  altitude  to  the  Great  Pyramid ; 
nnd  as  Niagara  is  said  to  be  160  feet,  Tequendama  lacks  less 
t  han  a  foot  of  being  three  times  as  deep.  The  bottom  of  the 
chasm  is  a  hundred  or  two  feet  lower  than  the  foot  of  the  fall. 

The  pre-eminence  in  depth,  then,  over  every  other  cataract  in 
1  his  hemisphere  does  not  tell.  It  can  not  be  compared  to  Ni- 
ngara.  You  do  not  here  hear  the  awful  sub-bass  of  Niagara. 
The  noise  is  even  less  than  that  of  many  smaller  cataracts,  on 
account  of  the  quantity  of  air  carried  down  with  the  water.  In 
fact,  I  think  most  of  the  roar  is  from  the  first  leap  of  only  28 
feet.  If  Niagara  has  a  rival  in  the  world,  it  must  be  the  Falls 
of  the  Missouri,  of  which  I  have  seen  no  good  account.  It 
seems  a  little  curious  that  Europe  should  monopolize  all  the 
high  falls.  Norway,  Sweden,  Switzerland,  and  the  Pyrenees 
alone  seem  to  boast  of  higher  falls  than  Tequendama ;  but  of 
their  six  perhaps  two  only  exceed  this  in  sublimity — Lulea  in 
Sweden,  600  feet,  and  Ruckon  Foss,  Norway,  800  feet.  But 
where,  in  this  competition  of  cataracts,  is  Asia,  with  the  highest 
mountains  of  the  world  ?  Has  she  no  cataracts  ?  Obviously 
plains,  not  mountains,  must  furnish  the  great  cataracts.  Te- 
quendama is  the  daughter  of  the  Plain  of  Bogota ;  and  if  Asia 
has  none  equal  to  it,  it  must  be  because  her  elevated  steppes  are 
almost  rainless  deserts. 

The  chasm  of  Tequendama  was  not  made  by  the  present  falls, 
/lost  rivers  emerge  from  the  mist  of  a  fall  in  a  pool  of  unfathom- 
able depth.  The  first  you  see  of  the  Bogota,  it  is  running  down 


278  NEW  GRANADA. 

an  inclined  plane  of  debris ;  but,  in  some  other  geological  era,  a 
mightier  stream,  occupying  the  whole  breadth  of  the  chasm,  may 
have  made  excavations,  which  the  present  is  but  filling  up  with 
stones  from  above. 

Tequendama  wants  the  power  of  Niagara.  The  river  might 
be  forded  a  little  above.  Human  effort  might  arrest  its  course, 
and  bid  the  cataract  cease  for  a  while.  Were  there  ground  near 
on  which  a  manufacturing  city  could  be  built,  the  whole  could 
be  drawn  off  and  let  down  over  a  series  of  breast-wheels,  as  at 
Paterson. 

The  mist  of  Tequendama  has  started  some  philosophical  spec- 
ulations in  my  mind.  The  people  say  that  it  often  spreads  in 
a  dense  fog  over  the  surrounding  country.  This  fog  begins  in 
the  morning,  at  from  9  to  11.  Is  there  more  fog  here  than  at 
Bogota  ?  A  day-fog  would  diminish  the  mean  temperature  of 
a  place;  a  night-fog  would  raise  it.  The  temperature  here, 
then,  ought  to  be  lower  than  elsewhere  at  the  same  level.  1 
found  it,  by  the  water  of  a  mine,  about  54°,  but  I  would  like  to 
see  it  confirmed.  Now,  although  Bogota  is  850  feet  higher,  its 
temperature  is  given  four  degrees  higher.  This  indicates  a  con- 
firmation of  my  suspicions.  In  passing  four  times  in  sight  of 
the  Fall  Mountains,  I  have  always  seen  the  mist  either  hover- 
ing among  them,  or  pouring  from  them  to  overspread  a  few 
square  miles  of  adjoining  country.  Now  we  must  remember 
that  this  country  has  no  fogs  like  ours,  but  bears  clouds  and 
mountain  mists  in  tropical  profusion.  This  small  body  of  wa- 
ter contrives  to  manufacture  a  hundred-fold  more  mist  than  Ni- 
agara, at  a  lower  altitude.  The  mist  is  begun  mechanically  ; 
of  this  there  can  be  no  doubt.  Is  it  not  propagated  meteorolog- 
ically ?  Has  not  one  particle  of  mist  the  power  of  generating 
another  in  a  favorable  atmosphere  ?  Here  is  a  grave  question. 
The  quantity  of  mist  generated  directly  by  the  falls  seems  very 
small ;  that  proceeding  from  them  varies  at  different  hours  of 
the  day,  and  often  streams  off  5  or  10  miles.  Possibly  all  thai 
the  weather  has  to  do  with  this  mist  is  to  absorb  it  at  some 
hours  and  not  at  others.  Meteorology,  as  a  science,  is  yet  in  its 
infancy.  New  Granada  offers  a  wide  field  for  the  study  of  some 
phases  of  it,  which  are  to  be  observed  nowhere  in  the  whole 
world  except  among  the  Andes. 


APPROACH  FROM  THE  WEST.  279 

I  could  look  out  from  where  I  stood  to  beyond  the  outlet  of 
the  chasm,  and  see  the  hills  there.  Down  one  of  those  hills  I 
saw  a  zigzag  path,  apparently  well  trodden,  that  seemed  to  have 
no  other  object  than  to  reach  the  water  below  the  falls.  I  then 
thought  that  the  people  above  must  come  down  there  to  wash 
or  to  cross  the  river.  I  noted  well  its  position,  for  I  hoped  to 
cross  to  the  right  bank  at  some  future  time,  gain  the  top  of  the 
hill,  and  there  descend. 

As  I  could  not  do  that,  I  made  a  long  expedition  down  the 
left  side  of  the  chasm,  to  see  if  I  could  descend  at  the  end  there. 
I  dare  not  guess  how  many  hours  I  spent  in  this  toilsome 
march.  I  went,  at  my  first  trial,  half  way  to  the  farthest  point 
I  could  see  at  the  top  of  the  precipice.  Here  I  found  that  an 
apparatus  had  been  constructed  to  lower  persons  down  to  the 
shelf  below  to  seek  for  hidden  treasures.  I  learned  next  day 
that  it  would  take  many  days  to  get  round  by  that  way  to  the 
lower  level,  as  no  path  existed,  and  every  rod,  and  nearly  every 
yard,  must  be  cut  with  the  machete. 

But  I  was  much  mistaken  about  that  zigzag  path.  To  reach 
that  hill-top  from  the  opposite  side  of  the  stream,  you  would 
have  first  to  descend  to  the  level  of  the  river  and  go  up  that  path. 
It  is  part  of  the  highway  from  Soacha  to  Tena  that  here  dips 
down  to  the  level  of  the  Bogota  just  to  rise  again  in  half  a  mile. 

Fifty-three  weeks  after  I  stood  on  that  same  point  of  hill  from 
which  the  road  comes  down,  and  there  caught  my  first  distant 
view  of  the  lonely  fall.  I  could  see  but  about  50  feet  of  the 
upper  part,  and  the  noise  was  hardly  audible.  The  great  par- 
allelogram, as  it  is  described,  opened  toward  me,  but  a  point  of 
hill  shut  out  of  sight  most  of  the  abyss  within.  It  seemed  to 
me  that  I  had  reached  the  outmost  verge  of  the  inhabited  world, 
and  there,  just  beyond  it,  surrounded  by  dense  and  untrodden 
woods,  was  this  gloomy  rather  than  magnificent  cascade. 

I  have  said  that  the  plain  of  Bogota  was  bordered  on  the  west 
by  a  range  of  low  hills,  which,  on  their  western  slope,  become 
precipitous,  and  often  absolute  precipices  at  a  certain  height. 
This  is  the  height  of  the  summit  of  the  chasm  down  which 
the  Bogota  here  leaps.  Now  draw  in  your  imagination  a  line 
on  the  exact  level  of  the  top  of  the  falls,  as  far  south  as  Nieva, 
and  as  far  north  as  Cipaquira.  It  might  strike  one  or  two  In- 


280  NEW  GRANADA. 

dian  villages,  but,  if  not,  every  mile  would  be  wilderness  almost 
untrodden.  Let  us  begin  at  the  north,  and  explore,  in  the  im- 
agination, this  cornice  of  the  mountain.  All  the  way  on  your 
left,  to  the  eastward,  you  have  woody  hills,  the  summits  of 
which  are  at  first  but  a  few  hundred  feet  above  your  line,  and 
separate  you  from  the  inhabited  plain.  West  of  you,  on  your 
right,  is  at  first  precipice,  with  a  few  gaps.  In  the  distance,  to 
the  west,  you  see  Villeta,  more  than  5000  feet  (nearly  a  mile) 
below  you,  with  its  cocoa-trees  and  cane-fields.  You  next  cross 
the  road  by  which  we  ascended  to  Bogota,  and  find  the  Aserra- 
dero  about  100  feet  above  you.  Then,  as  you  cross  the  road 
from  Mesa  to  Bogota,  you  see  in  the  distance  La  Mesa  on  a  de- 
tached table  more  than  3000  feet  below  you,  but  still  near  the 
upper  limit  of  cane  and  oranges.  Next  we  pass  the  head  of 
the  falls,  and  see  nothing  but  tangled  wilderness  till  we  cross 
the  road  descending  to  Fusagasuga.  That  town  afterward  ap- 
pears on  a  slope  of  the  mountain  a  little  higher  than  La  Mesa. 
Here  all  east  of  you  is  wild  mountain  and  desolate  plains. 
Next  you  pass  the  fearful  chasm  over  which  Nature  has  thrown 
the  Bridge  of  Pandi,  and,  by  traversing  still  100  miles  (air  line) 
of  wilderness  in  a  southwesterly  direction,  you  see  at  length  the 
tawny  Magdalena  at  Neiva,  7500  feet  below  you.  In  all  this 
vast  space  you  have  crossed  three  roads  and  two  rivers  that 
have  broken  through  from  the  east.  You  may  have  passed,  be- 
sides, two  Indian  villages  and  some  Indian  trails,  and  .nothing 
more  of  the  works  of  man.  Is  not  this  wilderness  indeed  ? 

The  portal  of  this  wild  is  the  yawning  chasm  of  Tequendama. 
I  descended  to  it,  accompanied  by  the  governor  of  the  then 
province  of  Tequendama,  and  an  attendant  bearing  ropes,  etc. 
We  had  gained  this  point  early  by  traveling  in  the  dark  before 
day.  We  were  resolved  to  penetrate  up  the  bank  of  the  river 
to  the  very  foot  of  the  falls.  It  was  impossible,  and,  I  think, 
can  hardly  be  ever  possible  when  the  river  is  too  high  to  be 
forded.  First  on  the  one  side  and  then  on  the  other,  the  stream 
dashes  against  cliffs  that  hardly  can  be  scaled.  Were  we  camp- 
ed on  this  spot  for  a  few  days,  I  would  hope,  even  at  this  stage 
of  water,  to  reach  the  spot.  It  is  said  also  to  have  been  reach- 
ed from  the  cliff  above,  on  this  right  bank,  by  a  dry  path,  but 
difficult  in  the  extreme.  To  this  we  could  find  no  guide. 


FALLS  OF  TEQUENDAMA. 


281 


[From  a  Photograph  by  Crowther.] 
FALLS  OF  TEQUENDAMA. 


PHOTOGRAPHIC  VIEW.  283 

We  ascended  toward  Canoas  and  Soacha,  and  the  ascent 
seemed  interminable.  We  at  length  reached  the  very  top  of 
the  ridge  that  hems  in  the  Sabana,  which  we  did  not  see.  Fol- 
lowing south  along  the  ridge,  we  came  to  the  road  that  leads  from 
Soacha  over  a  bridge,  past  the  Hacienda  of  Canoas,  to  the  Salto, 
and  also  to  some  coal  mines.  An  enormous  descent  is  before 
you,  and  good  judgment,  good  directions,  or  a  guide  is  necessary 
to  keep  you  from  losing  your  way.  I  believe  you  should  leave 
the  coal  mines  on  your  right,  and  keep  the  road  that  cost  the 
least.  At  length  you  reach  a  clear  spot,  where  the  mule-road 
ends,  and  where  so  many  parties  have  breakfasted  as  to  leave  to 
the  place  an  abundance  of  chicken-bones  and  the  name  Almorza- 
dero.  To  this  spot  coal  is  brought  up  stairs  by  cargueros,  and  by 
another  steep  flight  you  descend  to  the  falls  as  best  you  may. 

The  main  position  on  this  right  side  is  close  at  the  head  of 
the  fall,  as  is  the  only  one  known  on  the  left  bank.  There  is 
another  on  the  brink,  called  El  Balcon,  to  which  there  is  a  toler- 
able path,  and  where  stands  a  tree  bearing  the  name  of  the  dis- 
coverer of  the  spot.  At  this  point  was  taken  the  only  good 
photographic  representation  of  the  falls  that  I  know  of.  It 
was  by  Mr.  George  Crowther,  then  engaged  in  commercial  opera- 
tions in  Bogota,  and  an  amateur  photographer.  The  engraving 
on  the  opposite  page  was  drawn  on  wood  by  Mr.  Thwaites. 

No  art  can  do  justice  to  Niagara,  and  still  less  to  Tequendama. 
Landscapes  spread  horizontally :  the  eye  can  not  measure  depths 
when  it  sees  them — how  much  less  when  they  are  represented 
on  a  plane  surface ;  still,  you  have  here  an  accurate  delineation 
of  the  falls,  if  you  only  view  it  properly.  The  axis  of  the  cam- 
era was  depressed  in  taking  it,  and  the  eye  should  fall  on  it 
with  like  obliquity.  As  I  hold  the  plate  vertically  some  inches 
below  my  eye,  I  see  the  summit  of  the  cataract  on  a  level  with 
where  I  stood,  but  it  is  very  doubtful  if  any  one  who  has  not 
seen  the  Salto  can  get  this  view  of  it. 

I  advise  you,  therefore,  to  imagine  the  view  taken  from  the 
summit  of  the  debris  about  one  third  of  the  way  down.  About 
half  the  fall  is  visible  then,  but  not  a  front  view  of  it.  Now,  if 
you  can  look  at  it  till  the  upper  leap  appears  to  be  nearly  thirty 
feet  high,  then  the  abyss  will  open  before  you  in  its  true  pro- 
portions ;  if  not,  I  fear  that  those  human  figures,  which  are  in 


284  NEW  GRANADA. 

reality  far  too  large,  will  do  little  toward  a  perfect  measurement 
of  it.  That  tree-fern,  if  it  had  really  stood  where  the  artist  has 
put  it,  would  have  escaped  notice  in  the  picture,  so  distant  is 
what  seems  to  be  the  immediate  foreground.  Still  I  am  more 
than  satisfied  with  the  picture,  although  it  does  not  accomplish 
impossibilities.  No  attempt  to  take  a  photographic  view  from 
below  is  likely  to  be  made.  On  the  right  bank,  no  spot  above 
could  be  better  than  that  selected  by  the  artist.  On  the  other 
:;ide  far  better  points  of  view  might  be  found,  but  they  can  only 
be  reached  by  the  machete,  as  probably  not  a  trace  remains  after 
a  year  of  such  paths  as  I  cut,  If  not  trodden.  To  reach  the  ex- 
act front  requires  but  a  few  minutes'  cutting  after  leaving  the 
mine  on  the  left  side.  The  best  possible  point  of  view  is  from 
a  jutting  crag  that  here  extends  some  way  into  the  parallelo- 
gram, as  the  chasm  is  said  to  be. 

It  is  curious  to  read  the  exaggerated  accounts  of  the  place. 
We  are  told  that  such  is  the  deafening  roar  that  the  boldest 
hardly  dare  approach  within  a  hundred  yards  of  the  brink.  A 
perpendicular  fall  could  hardly  make  less  noise  than  here,  and  I 
think  we  do  not  even  hear  the  water  that  strikes  the  bottom. 
Ezquiaqui  says  that  the  falling  mass  has  excavated  a  hollow 
of  108  feet  in  depth  in  the  inclined  plane  of  rocks  on  which  it 
strikes.  This  could  not  be  easily  ascertained.  I  have  under- 
stood from  others  that  there  is  quite  a  place  behind  the  falling 
water,  where  persons  have  been  without  difficulty.  I  do  not 
rely  on  the  statement,  as  it  does  not  seem  probable.  The  wa- 
ter is  not  a  falling  sheet,  but  a  mixture  of  water  and  air,  that 
must  bring  down  with  it  a  far  greater  rush  of  wind  than  that  of 
the  Cave  of  jEolus  at  Niagara. 

I  myself  have  been  deceived  as  to  the  climate  at  the  bottom. 
True,  a  few  miles  below  are  cane-fields,  but  in  these  feV  miles 
the  bed  of  the  stream  makes  a  trifling  descent — say  of  consider- 
ably over  half  a  mile — in  addition  to  the  perpendicular  fall.  But 
"  we  see  palm-trees  down  on  the  shelf,  and  these  do  not  grow 
except  in  Tierra  Caliente."  These  "palms"  are  tree-ferns,  as 
any  botanist  can  tell  at  a  glance,  and  above  are  as  fine  speci- 
mens of  tree-ferns  as  you  will  see  any  where.  And  a  most  in- 
teresting object  they  are  to  a  botanist,  though  by  no  means  so 
beautiful  as  the  palm,  seldom  exceeding  twelve  feet  in  height, 


TREE-FERNS.  285 

with  a  rough,  shaggy  trunk,  crowned  with  a  large  number  of 
horizontal  fronds  very  uniform  and  precise  in  their  shape. 
Drawings  of  the  tree-ferns  are  not,  however,  apt  to  do  them  jus- 
tice. The  crowns  of  those  at  Tequendama  are  far  heavier,  and 
the  fronds  far  more  uniform  in  size  and  direction,  than  in  the 
example  seen  in  the  plate.  The  trunks  are  generally  of  about 
half  the  height  there  seen,  with  hundreds  of  fronds  as  long  and 
heavy  as  the  longest  there  given.  They  seem  to  delight  in  this 
precise  altitude,  and,  indeed,  not  only  were  these  the  first  I  ever 
saw,  but  nearly  all  that  I  have  seen  since  are  near  here,  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  descent  to  Fusagasuga.  In  these  two  localities  I 
have  seen  quite  a  number  of  species  of  different  genera,  though 
all  alike  in  habit,  and  undistinguishable  except  by  close  observ- 
ation. It  is  a  little  curious  that  Humboldt  seems  to  have  found 
but  a  single  fern  in  all  the  bounds  of  New  Granada.  They  are 
very  abundant  and  varied,  both  in  the  valley  of  the  Cauca  and 
in  the  neighborhood  of  Bogota. 

Tequendama  is  one  of  the  richest  localities  of  plants  that  I 
have  ever  seen.  The  woods  are  damp,  while  most  land  at  thi^ 
altitude  is  dry.  On  four  of  the  five  days  I  have  spent  here,  I 
have  literally  loaded  myself  with  rich  specimens.  For  some  I 
have  had  to  reach  far  over  the  abyss,  in  a  position  in  which  cau- 
tion is  instinctive.  But  there  is  much  here  that  I  can  not  get, 
and  some  plants  in  fruit  to  which,  I  fear,  I  shall  not  soon  get  a 
clew.  Here  grows  the  granadillo,  of  which  I  saw  a  dead  trunk, 
but  could  not  identify  a  living  tree.  If  it  is  not  the  Bucida 
capitata,  I  can  not  tell  what  it  is :  it  is  almost  impossible  to 
identify  woods  that  you  see  worked 'here.  I  can  not  tell  this 
from  rose-wood  by  any  recollections  that  I  have. 

Before  leaving  the  falls,  I  suggest  some  facilities  that  should 
be  provided  for  visiting  them.  A  visit  should  be  made  early  in 
the  day.  The  nearest  place  where  you  can  be  sure  of  spending 
the  night  is  Soacha,  and  you  may  not  be  comfortable  there ; 
and  yet  it  would  cost  little  to  make  visits  here  quite  pleasant. 
The  locks  ought  to  be  taken  off  the  gates,  and  the  wagon-road 
on  the  left  bank  thrown  open  to  the  public.  A  cottage  with 
two  rooms,  and  a  shed  for  cooking,  ought  to  be  erected  near  the 
falls.  A  foot-bridge,  or  even  a  mule-bridge,  should'  be  thrown 
over  the  river  a  few  rods  above  the  fall.  A  mule-road  should ' 


286  NEW  GRANADA. 

be  made  into  the  hollow  below  the  falls,  and  from  there  np  the 
chasm  to  the  foot  of  the  fall.  Thus  a  cottage,  a  bridge,  and  a 
mile  of  mule-road  are  all  that  is  needed  tor  make  the  summit 
and  foot  of  the  falls  alike  accessible  to  persons  from  Bogota  and 
La  Mesa. 

The  left  bank  belongs  to  the  hacienda  of  Cincha,  the  prop- 
erty of  a  brother  of  Sefior  Umana.  The  house  is  the  nearest 
to  the  Salto.  I  had  no  introduction  to  the  proprietor,  but  met 
with  a  dependant  who  occupies  part  of  his  house,  whose  conduct 
toward  me  was  much  more  like  a  gentleman  than  a  peasant. 
The  superintendent  of  Cincha,  Senor  Abadia,  appeared  quite  the 
reverse. 

The  hacienda  of  Tequendama  is  much  farther — two  miles — 
from  the  falls,  but  far  more  valuable,  and  better  situated  on  the 
last  nook  in  the  plain.  The  saw-mill  was  a  curiosity.  It  had  a 
large  breast-wheel,  which,  with  its  gearings,  cost  as  much  as  the 
entire  mill  need  to  have  done.  It  ran  very  slowly  indeed,  and 
did  rather  poor  work.  The  quinine  factory  had  been  a  grist- 
milL  Some  part  of  the  apparatus  was  quite  costly ;  the  rest 
very  coarse,  but  sufficient.  The  director,  M.  Louis  Godin,  was 
a  true  Frenchman,  kind,  cordial,  and  active.  His  lady,  who 
"  could  not  be  married  to  him  for  want  of  her  certificate  of  bap- 
tism," was  a  good  specimen  of  the  Dutch  negress.  I  am  not 
ashamed  to  confess  that  I  enjoyed  her  society  very  much,  and 
I  afterward  took  considerable  pains  to  see  her  again.  Even 
had  I  no  worthier  motive  for  appreciating  her,  the  specimens  of 
northern  cookery  she  exhibited  would  have  been  very  attractive 
to  one  who  had  been  deprived  of  it  so  long.  The  quinine  made 
here  is  not  esteemed  in  Bogota,  but  I  am  satisfied  that  it  is  skill- 
fully made  and  pure,  and,  while  there  may  be  worse,  there  can 
be  none  better.  The  bark  is  pulverized  entirely  by  hand,  and 
comes  from  places  in  the  mountains  south  of  here,  as  nearly  as 
I  could  ascertain.  Every  man  keeps  his  own  quina  secrets. 

On  Sunday  Senor  Umana  came  and  paid  off  his  laborers  for 
the  week.  They  must  have  been  nearly  a  hundred  in  number. 
His  counting-room  contained  two  articles  that  surprised  me. 
One  was  a  coach,  apparently  in  good  order,  that  could  be  run 
to  Bogota  any  day,  but  which,  I  think,  from  force  of  habit,  stands 
idle  year  after  year.  The  other  was  Pope's  Essay  on  Man,  in 


END  OF  THE  PLAIN.  257 

English.  Such  an  unexpected  addition  to  my  religious  litera- 
ture was  not  to  be  neglected,  so  I  took  it  up  to  the  parlor,  and 
read  it  through  with  great  pleasure  and  profit. 


CHAPTER 

BALLS    AND    BCLL& 

Cibate.— Priest  trareBng.— 45pinning.— Yoking  Cattle,— President  tnveting.— 
Perpetual  Bain. — Biding  a  la  Torque  advocated. — Cargnero  and  Babe. — Sleep- 
ing in  slippery  Places. — Unnecessary  Ascent. — Balls. — Boll-feasts. — Open 
Prison.— A  Walk.— Bich  Gardens,  unfortunate  g*****™™,  and  frail  Poetess. 
^-Snails'  Eggs.— Masquerades  and  April-fools.— Gambling.— Dr.  Blagborne's 
Famflv. — T.ittL»  At"*** 

I  TTKE  to  start  early  in  the  week.  The  Soacha  mule-owner 
had  promised  to  have  beasts  ready.  We  agreed  on  the  price. 
I  was  abundantly  satisfied  with  six  dimes  per  beast  from  Bogo- 
ta to  Tequendama,  and  unfortunately  told  the  owner  so.  He 
demanded  eight  dimes  from  there  to  Fnsagasuga.  As  I  thought 
it  reasonable,  he  added  that  he  must  count  the  peon  as  a  beast, 
making  thirty-two  dimes  instead  of  twenty-four.  To  this  I  as- 
sented, and  he  feared  his  generosity  would  be  his  ruin;  so, 
when  I  sent  for  the  beasts,  instead  of  sending  them,  he  sent 
word  he  must  have  ten  dimes.  He  made  me  lose  a  day,  but 
he,  in  turn,  lost  his  bargain.  I  returned  no  answer,  and  when, 
the  day  after,  he  sent  his  peon  and  mules,  another  was  loading 
my  baggage  for  the  trip. 

Traveling  south,  I  have  had  all  the  time  at  my  left  that  chain 
of  the  Andes  at  the  foot  of  which  lies  Bogota.  The  ^eafcaa 
rim  of  the  Basin  of  Bogota  might  be  considered  as  another  and 
much  lower  ridge,  which,  having  diverged  from  the  other,  has 
again  approached  it  so  as  to  leave  room  for  a  road,  and  li  miliBBM 
farms  on  each  side  of  it.  Nearly  all  the  houses  stood  back  at 
the  foot  of  the  hills.  This  arm  of  the  plain  proved  longer  than 
I  expected.  I  found  its  end  at  Cibate,  where,  however,  there  is 
no  village. 

At  Cibate  I  parted  company  with  a  priest — a  fine,  pleasant 
fellow — who  had  been  settled  at  Pandi,  but  was  now  without 
charge.  He  invited  me  here  to  take  some  refreshment  with 


288 


NEW   GRANADA. 


him,  to  which  I  was  not  inclined.  He  was  quite  inquisitive 
about  the  United  States,  and  wished  to  know  if  it  would  be 
long  before  the  immigrant  Catholics  would  be  so  far  able  to  out- 
vote the  Protestants  as  to  establish  their  religion  by  law. 


PRIEST   ON    A   JOURNEY. 


I  can  not  vouch  that  the  above  portrait  was  taken  from  this 
worthy  subject,  but  it  will  do  very  well  for  him.  His  face  is 
bound  up  to  protect  it  from  the  dry  wind  and  the  intense  light, 
one  or  both  of  which  sometimes  destroy  the  skin,  and  often 
chap  the  lips.  Before  him,  on  his  saddle,  is  tied  his  bayeton, 
his  defense  from  rain  by  day,  and  his  blanket  at  night.  His 
legs  are  defended  by  zamarras  of  dog-skin,  and  his  hat  by  a 
funda,  or  case,  made  of  oiled  cotton — hule — or  oiled  silk.  1 
judge  his  to  be  cotton,  for  it  is  of  a  dull  red  or  brown. 


SPINNING  STEEET-TAEN.  289 

Behind  comes  his  peon  with  an  enormous  dog-whip — perrero 
— of  which  the  handle  is  the  toughest  wood  known  here,  if  not 
to  man.  It  is  called  guayacan,  and  is  quite  probably  a  Guaia- 
cum.  I  have  never  been  able  to  find  it  growing,  nor  get  a  stick 
of  it  entirely  free  from  knots  and  crooks.  It  never  seems  to 
attain  a  diameter  of  more  than  an  inch.  The  horse  has  evident- 
ly been  making  some  trouble  by  following  his  nose  off  among 
the  bushes,  where  he"  should  not  go,  and  is  now  taking  the 
back  track  and  also  the  consequences.  On  his  back  is  a  huge 
bag,  called  by  the  Moorish  word  almofrez,  or,  more  properly, 
vaca — cow.  The  hide  of  a  cow  would  be  insufficient  to  make 
the  bag,  nor  would  the  entire  animal  be  sufficient  to  fill  it.  I 
have  seen  them  as  large  as  the  largest  feather-bed. 

From  Cibate  I  rose  till  I  had  a  fine  view  of  the  plain,  of 
which  we  must  now  take  a  long  farewell.  Nothing  but  the 
cold  makes  it  a  glad  one  to  me.  As  I  left  the  hacienda,  I  saw 
the  leaves  of  various  plants  nipped  with  frost,  a  rare  occurrence, 
indeed,  but  one  that  may  happen  any  month  in  the  year,  not 
only  under  the  mist  of  Tequendama,  but  all  over  the  plain.  I 
confess  I  am  anxious  to  reach  a  more  genial  clime. 

As  I  passed  along,  I  saw  a  woman  going  from  one  house  to 
another,  spinning  cotton  as  she  went.  There  are  many  species 
of  Gossypium  growing  in  Tierra  Caliente,  but  those  that  are 
most  resorted  to,  I  can  not  say  cultivated,  are  large  shrubs,  with 
quite  a  scanty  fibre.  The  apparatus  for  spinning  is  a  stick,  with 
a  potato  or  other  weight  stuck  on  the  lower  end.  It  has  this 
superiority  over  all  others,  that  it  needs  no  machines  for  picking 
and  carding,  is  the  cheapest  and  most  portable  in  the  world,  and 
is  not  liable  to  get  out  of  repair.  Further,  to  spin  street-yarn 
must  here  be  rather  a  meritorious  act. 

Near  the  very  top  of  the  hill  I  saw  a  man  yoking  oxen.  One 
had  been  caught  with  the  lazo  and  tied  to  a  post,  and  the  yoke 
tied  to  his  head.  The  other  was  dragged  to  the  spot  vi  et  ar- 
mis,  and  his  horns  securely  tied  to  the  same  straight  stick  call- 
ed a  yoke.  They  could  not  move  their  heads  a  particle,  nor 
look  behind  them ;  but  when  angry,  they  could  look  daggers 
at  each  other  with  one  eye  apiece.  They  are  said  to  make 
a  queer  use  of  the  yoke  in  some  parts  of  the  country  upon  the 
paramos.  They  have  a  long  yoke  with  an  ox  at  each  end. 

T 


290  NEW  GRANADA. 

When  they  catch  cattle  for  slaughter,  they  hold  the  victim  down 
by  keeping  his  heels  stretched  out  behind  till  the  centre  of  the 
yoke  is  brought  over  his  head.  He  is  raised  on  his  fofe  feet, 
as  horses  (not  cows)  rise,  while  his  heels  are  held  fast  till  hi.s 
head  is  secured  to  the  yoke  immovably.  They  are  then  re- 
leased, and  his  new  acquaintances  show  him  the  way  home  in 
style.  There  is  no  love  lost  between  them  on  the  way,  but  the 
recruit's  volition  is  of  very  little  consequence. 

I  now  lost  sight  of  the  plain,  and  of  my  little  peon  and  his 
three  little  mules,  for  he  took  a  spare  one  in  case  of  accident.  He 
came  in  next  morning.  I  descended,  rose  and  descended.  The 
road  might  still  be  called  a  carriage-road,  but  of  the  worst  de- 
scription. Here  I  met  the  President's  Lancers,  who  have  been 
tagging  after  him  during  a  fortnight's  relaxation  at  Fusagasuga. 
Soon  after  came  the  President,  accompanied  by  an  officer.  I 
exchanged  a  few  words  with  him,  and  farther  on  met  his  bag- 
gage, with  a  lancer  or  two. 

Soon  the  road  grew  worse  than  any  I  had  yet  seen,  though 
nature  had  thrown  no  difficulties  in  the  way.  I  thought  a  com- 
pany of  sappers  would  have  been  more  useful  to  the  President 
than  lancers. 

Here  I  came  again  to  the  gray  woods.  The  effect  on  the 
landscape  was  that  of  an  immense  quantity  of  Spanish  moss,  or 
of  Usnea  barbata  at  the  North,  but  the  cause  lay  in  no  one 
thing.  Then  came  the  tree-ferns,  and  some  huge  stalks  of  what 
I  guess  to  be  achipulla,  the  root  of  which  is  eaten  by  bears 
and  men.  I  have  never  seen  the  growing  plant,  which  is  eight 
or  ten  feet  high,  but  I  think  it  is  Amaryllidate  or  Liliate. 

The  road  now  grew  damp,  nay,  absolutely  wet.  I  had  pass- 
ed the  Boca  del  Monte — the  mouth  of  the  woods.  Then  came 
a  clear  open  space,  made  for  or  by  the  resting  of  travelers.  In 
solitary  roads  these  are  called  contaderos,  or  counting-places, 
because  here  they  count  their  company,  to  see  that  no  essential 
individual,  quadruped  or  biped,  is  missing. 

At  the  contadero  a  large  assemblage  of  little  crosses  announced 
that  I  stood  at  the  summit  of  no  common  ascent.  Whether  it 
was  because  I  erected  no  cross  I  know  not,  but  the  descent 
seemed  to  me  interminable.  Here,  it  is  said,  no  man  passes 
without  being  rained  on.  Whether  tliis  means  that  it  rains 


DESCENDING  TO  FUSAGASUGA.  291 

there  all  the  time,  or  only  when  it  catches  a  man  worth  wetting, 
I  know  not.  I  received  this  time  the  fewest  possible  drops  to 
make  good  the  assertion.  I  have  passed  there  four  times  since, 
and  have  had  no  farther  occasion  to  complain  of  neglect.  Once, 
indeed,  I  caught  it  essentially.  I  had  slept  little  the  night  be- 
fore. It  rained  monotonously.  The  road,  which  ordinarily 
seems  like  riding  down  the  Bunker  Hill  Monument  after  some 
earthquake  had  displaced  half  the  steps,  was  worse  than  usual. 
The  poor  mule,  who  had  the  responsible  task  of  bringing  me 
down  to  the  bottom,  to  warmth,  and  to  sunshine,  was  tasked  to 
the  utmost. 

I  was  not  labeled  "keep  dry"  but  only  "with  care"  and 
while  he  was  doing  his  whole  duty  I  fell  asleep.  His  back  was 
generally  at  an  angle  of  45°  with  the  horizon ;  mine  had  sub- 
sided into  so  many  curves  as  would  bring  my  shoulders  nearest 
the  saddle.  How  long  I  slept,  or  of  what  I  dreamed,  I  have  no 
idea ;  but  I  waked  to  find  that  my  encauchado  had  slipped  for- 
ward, so  that  a  stream  from  my  hat  was  running  through  the 
head-hole  and  down  my  back  to  the  saddle. 

Descending,  still  descending,  like  riding  down  an  intermina- 
ble Bunker  Hill  Monument  or  a  Trinity  steeple  as  high  as  Jacket 
bean.  Here  I  met  women  riding  a  la  Turque,  or,  more  directly 
speaking,  astride.  Near  Bogota  this  is  not  practiced  much.  Not 
one  woman  in  five  does  it,  and  those  who  claim  to  be  ladies  par 
excellence  will  not  own  that  they  ever  do  it  except  in  the  rough- 
est roads.  But  it  does  not  appear  to  me  ungraceful,  still  less 
disgraceful.  You.  see  no  more  of  the  rider's  ankle  than  she 
chooses ;  she  is  less  exposed  to  awkward  accidents,  and  is  de- 
livered from  those  really  dangerous  riding-dresses  of  civilization. 
She  does  not  ride  with  her  chest  twisted,  and  has  her  animal 
more  at  command.  In  fact,  the  bifurcate  construction  of  man  is 
his  charter  of  supremacy  over  the  brute  race. 

Infancy  must  not  be  trusted  to  the  risks  of  a  horseman's  arms 
here.  A  more  secure  conveyance  is  exhibited  in  the  plate  on 
the  following  page.  This  worthy  descendant  of  the  Muiscas, 
that  has  taken  off  his  hat  to  you,  says,  "  Sacramento  del  altar." 
The  whole  phrase,  if  he  ever  said  it,  would  mean,  "Praised  be  the 
holy  sacrament  of  the  altar!"  Your  answer  should  be,  "Para 
siempre" — "Forever."  Perhaps  you  assent  to  the  efficacy  cf 
the  mass  in  this  response. 


292 


NEW  GRANADA. 


CABGUERO    AND   BABK. 


lie  carries  a  box,  with  pieces  of  hoop  nailed  on  to  support  a 
cover  and  curtain  of  cloth.  The  whole  thing  was  extemporized 
in  half  an  hour.  Within  is  a  babe,  an  unconscious  traveler, 
whose  mother  is  half  an  hour  behind,  for  she  rides  a  quadruped. 

Descending,  still  descending.  But  "  it  is  a  long  lane  that  has 
no  turning,"  and,  however  illimitable  moral  descent  may  be. 
physical  downhill  generally  stops  at  the  least  when  it  has  reach- 
ed the  ocean  level.  Once  I  caught  a  view,  through  a  gap  of 
trees,  of  the  mountain  beyond,  and  of  the  distant  plain.  I  was 
in  a  deep  shade  of  trees  and  clouds ;  the  distant  scene  lay  in 
bright  sunshine,  but  covered  with  a  mantle  of  that  blue  scarce- 
ly ever  seen  except  upon  mountains.  No  painter  would  have 
dared  to  color  it  as  I  saw  it.  It  looked  like  heaven. 

Descending,  still  descending.  At  last  the  descent  became 
more  reasonable,  such  as  a  carriage-road  would  delight  in,  and  I 
rejoiced  over  my  task  as  accomplished.  In  this  frame  of  mind  I 


UNFAIR  CONDUCT   OF  MY  HOESE.  29i> 

caught  sight  of  a  respectable  mountain  in  front  of  me.  I  was 
about  on  a  level  with  its  summit,  and  it  was  too  obvious  that 
I  must  go  to  the  foot.  Again  I  began  to  ride  down  stairs, 
determined  that  my  patience  should  not  fail  again  till  I  had 
reached  the  very  bottom.  At  the  foot  of  the  mountain  opposite 
me  I  reached  a  stream,  and  in  a  spirit  of  leisure  and  thankful- 
ness ate  some  hard-boiled  eggs,  which  the  kind  and  provident 
Joanna  had  put  into  the  pockets  of  the  saddle,  and  then  slowly 
set  forward.  Three  disagreeable  surprises  now  came  upon  me 
in  succession :  that  I  had  yet  an  immense  descent  to  make ; 
that  I  had  to  climb  the  opposite  mountain  before  descending ; 
and  that  night  was  to  overtake  me  in  the  mountain. 

This  ascent  was  entirely  unnecessary.  A  shorter  road  could 
be  made  around  the  mountain  than  over  it.  The  Spaniards  had 
an  aversion  to  roads  on  the  sides  of  mountains.  This  unneces- 
sary ascent  was  so  great  that  it  would  be  a  prominent  event  in 
an  overland  journey  from  Boston  to  Oregon.  It  is  not  equaled 
by  that  of  Mount  Holyoke — if,  indeed,  by  that  to  Catskill 
Mountain  House. 

I  reached  the  top  just  after  sunset,  and  again  the  short  trop- 
ical twilight  revealed  the  plain  in  indescribable  loveliness.  A 
vexatious  but  whimsical  affair  diminished  by  an  hour  or  more 
the  length  of  my  night  ride.  I  had  been  very  tender  of  my  lit- 
tle horse — a  weakness  to  which  I  confess  I  am  subject,  because 
"  the  merciful  man  is  merciful  to  his  beast."  I  had  more  than 
once  attempted  to  lead  mine,  but  he  elongated  his  mortal  frame 
as  if  consenting  that  his  nose  might  reach  Fusagasuga  that 
night,  provided  I  would  allow  his  body  till  next  day  to  overtake 
it.  And  l^e  held  back,  giving  me  the  labor  of  partly  transport- 
ing him,  till  my  strength  and  my  patience  were  both  exhausted. 

Just  at  dark  the  idea  occurred  of  driving  him.  I  fixed  the 
bridle  securely  to  the  saddle,  cut  a  switch,  and  placed  myself 
in  the  rear.  The  plan  worked  admirably.  We  got  along  bet- 
ter than  at  any  time  since  we  had  left  the  plain.  It  soon  oc- 
curred to  me  to  see  if  I  could  catch  him  again,  and  I  found  my 
pony  liked  the  new  arrangement  so  well  that  he  meant  it  should 
be  a  permanent  one.  Nay,  he  even  proposed  quitting  the  high- 
way entirely  for  the  fields  and  woods.  This  I  prevented  by 
some  active  steps.  When  I  quickened  my  pace,  the  way  pony 


294  NEW  GRANADA. 

marveled  over  the  huge  rocks  was  edifying.  I  had  wet  one 
foot,  and,  I  fear,  lost  some  of  my  patience,  when,  by  a  sudden 
motion,  I  seized  a.  rein  and  brought  him  to. 

If  the  reader  supposes  I  rode  at  the  same  delicate  pace  the 
rest  of  the  way,  he  knows  little  of  human  nature.  The  merci- 
ful man  does  not  treat  all  beasts  alike,  and,  had  not  the  rider 
been  under  obligations  to  be  merciful  to  his  own  neck,  this  par- 
ticular beast  would  have  suffered  some. 

At  Fusagasuga  I  found  the  Church  in  full  blast  with  explosive 
rockets,  whirligigs,  and  other  fireworks  letting  off  outside,  for  it 
was  the  eve  of  some  saint.  I  rode  past  all  this,  and  in  the  bos- 
om of  an  English  family,  entire  strangers  to  me,  I  found  satis- 
faction enough  in  one  hour  to  repay  me  for  the  day's  ride. 

By  daylight,  the  plain,  instead  of  paradisiac  alluvium,  proved 
to  be  diluvium,  or  drift  of  rather  a  diabolic  kind,  for  it  was 
thickly  strewn,  in  some  places  almost  paved,  with  huge  stones. 
Nor  was  it  horizontal,  but  descended  rapidly  toward  the  River 
Fusagasuga,  which  lay  at  the  foot  of  a  ridge  of  the  mountain, 
and  ran  west.  The  plain  lay  between  this  ridge  and  the  one 
next  interior  or  southeast  of  it,  and  might  itself  be  considered 
as  one  of  the  many  spurs  sent  down  by  the  latter  ridge,  all 
terminating  at  the  base  of  the  former. 

Fusagasuga  is  an  ugly-looking  town,  lying  at  the  upper  end 
of  the  plain,  adjoining  the  mountain,  as  all  Spanish  towns  gen- 
erally are.  With  one  exception,  there  are  no  houses  but  mud 
cottages.  I  can  not  solve  the  politico-economical  problem  of 
the  existence  of  the  town,  as  there  are  not  visitors  enough  to  aid 
it  essentially,  and  there  is  not  industry  enough  to  support  it. 
These  puzzles  are  driving  me  to  the  conclusion  that  the  Gra- 
nadino  earns  little  and  spends  little,  and,  rather  than  work,  will 
endure  the  ills  of  poverty.  Nearly  every  house  in  Fusagasuga 
is  a  tienda,  a  regular  tavern  minus  lodging-rooms.  The  rooms 
are  two,  besides,  perhaps,  a  kitchen  in  the  rear.  One  is  the 
store,  in  which  the  customers  are  admitted  only  just  within  the 
door;  the  other  a  parlor,  scantily  furnished.  The  floors  are 
mostly  of  earth. 

I  spent  most  of  the  holidays  at  Fusagasuga,  but  saw  little  to 
interest  me  in  the  village.  I  absented  myself  from  the  pleasant 
family  long  enough  to  see  a  part  of  three  balls,  held  in  the  par- 


BALLS  AT  FUSAGASUGA".  295 

lors  of  friends.  They  were  solemn  affairs,  both  the  dancing  and 
the  sitting  still.  The  ladies  sat  by  themselves,  and,  with  the 
children,  filled  nearly  all  the  seats.  The  music  was  from  two 
clarinets  and  a  tamborine,  for  the  "Brighton  of  Bogota"  can 
not  boast  a  fiddler.  Very  little  beauty  was  present,  and  a  de- 
cided amount  of  ugliness.  The  morals  of  the  place  are  said  to 
be  in  so  happy  a  state  that  there  is  not  a  female  in  the  place 
whose  character  is  such  as  to  exclude  her  from  these  reunions, 
to  which  neither  invitations  nor  partners  are  requisite. 

The  figures  are  not  always  well  understood,  and  very  few 
went  through  them  manifesting  any  other  motive  than  a  sense 
of  duty.  In  solemnity  and  gravity,  however,  they  do  not  ex- 
ceed the  upper  classes  in  New- York,  who  deem  enthusiastic 
dancing  vulgar. 

One  of  the  balls  had  a  supper  of  hot  roast  meat  and  turkey, 
with  quantities  of  pies  seasoned  with  garlic,  and  dishes  flavor- 
ed with  lime-juice  and  capsicum.  The  ladies  ate  first.  One 
gentleman,  in  helping  the  ladies,  helped  himself  also.  He  had 
in  his  hand  a  double  joint  of  turkey.  When  a  piece  was  nearly 
cut  off,  he  would  offer  it  to  a  lady,  who  would  take  it  in  her  fin- 
gers. When  his  own  piece  was  nearly  off,  for  want  of  another 
hand,  he  took  it  in  his  teeth,  and  then  went  on  with  grave  im- 
partiality to  help  the  next.  A  lady  wanted  drink.  A  gentle- 
man held  a  cup  to  her  lips,  and,  as  she  drank,  made  the  noise 
nurses  make  when  inviting  babes  to  drink.  In  all  this  there 
was  a  vein  of  humor,  in  strong  contrast  with  the  general  solem- 
nity of  the  performances. 

I  learn  that  the  gentleman  distributing  the  morsels  of  turkey 
is  an  illegitimate  son  of  President  Santander.  I  had  seen,  in 
the  Cemetery  of  Bogota,  a  monument  to  "  the  legitimate  son  of 
Santander,"  but  did  not  think  at  the  time  that  the  spiteful  ep- 
.itaph  meant  to  insinuate  that  he  had  illegitimate  children  also ; 
but  unexpectedly  I  saw  here  the  living  monument  to  a  fact  that 
does  not  tend  much  to  diminish  the  respect  with  which  Gra- 
nadinos  look  on  the  "  Man  of  the  Laws,"  claimed  by  many  to  be 
the  greatest  man  ever  born  on  Granadan  soil.  The  young  man 
bears  his  father's  name.  I  last  met  him  here  in  the  Valley  of 
the  Cauca,  with  five  others,  having  in  their  charge  an  immense- 
ly valuable  assortment  of  Church  trappings  of  every  description, 


296  NEW   GRANADA. 

which  they  were  exposing  for  sale  in  every  place  between  Bogo- 
ta and  Quito. 

The  Christmas  ball  was  at  its  height  when  the  church  bells 
rattled  out  the  time  for  cock-mass.  All  parties  went  to  church 
re-enforced  by  the  ascetic  part  of  community,  so  as  to  make  a 
respectable  congregation.  The  same  musicians  went  into  the 
choir  with  their  clarinets  and  tamborines,  and  gave  us  the  same 
or  similar  tunes.  The  priest  had  in  his  lap  a  doll  or  image  of 
a  boy,  which  a  large  number  crowded  round  to  kiss.  Then  came 
a  procession  as  far  as  the  church  door  and  back  to  the  altar.  A 
long  mass  followed,  and  all  parties,  sleepy  enough,  went  home 
and  to  bed. 

Sabbath  brought  no  intermission  either  to  billiards  or  balls. 
I  regretted  not  going  on  Sunday  evening,  just  for  a  moment 
only,  to  see  the  Cura  officiating  as  "  Ensign  (patron)  of  the  Ball," 
a  fact  of  which  he  assured  me  himself  afterward.  This  is  also 
the  market-day  of  Fusagasuga.  Such  an  annoyance  can  never 
be  understood  by  description.  But  if  one  could  see,  as  I  did,  the 
ladylike  daughters  of  my  host  patiently  engaged  for  an  hour,  or 
even  two,  in  a  repulsive  duty  that  could  not  be  delegated  to  serv- 
ants nor  adjourned  to  another  day,  you  would  feel  that  the  nui- 
sance is  beyond  Christian  endurance. 

The  mass  and  market  occurred  together,  of  course.  I  would 
not  uncover  at  the  elevation  of  the  hostia,  and  generally  was  out 
of  the  market  at  that  time,  so  as  not  to  offend  the  faithful.  Once, 
indeed,  while  I  was  with  one  of  the  ladies  in  market,  we  were 
caught  by  a  procession  which  came  out  of  the  church  and  went 
round  the  square.  I  did  not  remove  my  hat.  Fortunately,  no 
fanatic  who  would  dare  interfere  saw  me.  Many  are  in  favor  of 
prohibiting  all  processions  out  of  church. 

Christmas  is  the  season  of  bull -fights  at  Fusagasuga,  an 
amusement  forbidden  at  Bogota,  on  account  of  the  sacrifice  of 
human  life  with  which  it  is  frequently  attended  there.  They 
were  busy  inclosing  the  square  in  front  of  the  church  with  a  pole 
fence  on  Sunday.  I  had  determined  to  witness  this  sport,  not- 
withstanding the  cruelty  of  it.  Both  the  sport  and  the  cruelty 
I  found  were  entirely  imaginary,  for  the  accompanying  sketch  is 
rather  an  idealization  than  a  fair  specimen.  This  bull  in  the 
picture  happens  to  be  uncommonly  fierce,  and  not  to  exhibit  that 


298 


NEW  GRANADA. 


THE  BULL-FEAST.  299 

spirit  of  meekness  that  I  generally  have  observed  in  animals  oc- 
cupying his  position.  After  one  or  two  irresolute  pushes  at  his 
tormentors,  who  invariably  dodge  him,  he  often  becomes  so  ob- 
stinately quiet  that  he  will  even  let  you  throw  fire-crackers  under 
his  feet  without  deigning  to  respond,  except  by  a  look  of  sullen 
contempt.  The  toreador  does  not  now  bear  the  name  matador, 
for  he  no  longer  kills,  though  he  sometimes  is  killed,  but  always 
by  accident.  He  bears  no  weapon,  but  often  has  his  ruana  in 
his  hand,  which  he  manages  to  throw  over  the  bull's  eyes,  and 
then  there  is  the  fun  of  seeing  him  get  it  off  without  tearing  it, 
perhaps.  You  will  not  fail  to  notice  that  the  tips  of  the  bull's 
horns  have  been  sawed  off. 

But  our  bull  in  the  engraving  seems  to  be  thoroughly  roused. 
While  prostrate  and  held  by  lazos,  a  belt  was  put  around  his 
body,  and  that  chap,  with  a  spur  on  his  naked  heel,  sprung  upon 
him  as  they  let  him  up.  That  man  in  a  heavy  bayeton  has 
got  a  lesson.  He  will,  in  future,  take  care  not  to  encounter  the 
foe  when  neither  in  a  condition  to  fight  or  fly.  Indeed,  I  can 
not  say  but  that  he  does  the  latter  as  it  is,  but  he  seeks  no  safe- 
ty in  that  flight.  Now  he  is  after  the  cachaco.  Oh,  if  he  could 
only  get  one  horn  into  that  hated  coat,  the  amusement  of  the 
crowd  of  ruana- wearers  would  be  complete ! 

I  have  seen  bull-fights,  as  we  call  them  in  English,  till  I  am 
tired  of  them.  It  would  be  better  to  call  them  bull-feasts,  as  a 
translation  of  the  Spanish  expression  of  fiesta  de  toros.  The 
only  thing  objectionable  about  them  is  the  waste  of  time,  and 
the  danger  to  which  the  toreadores  expose  themselves.  Most 
of  the  toreadores  are  graziers,  who  need  to  understand  how  to 
conduct  in  the  presence  of  a  bull.  I  know  of  a  lad  of  16,  who 
had  a  bull  fastened  to  the  horn  of  his  saddle,  when  his  girth  came 
loose,  and  the  bull  pulled  him  and  his  saddle  off  the  horse.  In 
such  a  case,  if  you  can  foil  the  bull  with  your  ruana  a  little,  he 
will  turn  his  attention  to  some  other  pursuit  more  agreeable  to 
you,  if  not  better  for  him.  At  any  rate,  the  bull  has  the  safest 
game  of  the  two,  though  not  the  most  agreeable. 

I  visited  the  cantonal  prison  in  Fusagasuga  with  more  indig- 
nation than  any  other  I  ever  saw.  We  came  to  the  door,  and 
saw  quite  a  number  of  men  inside,  who  invited  us  to  walk  in, 
and  we  did.  "  Where  is  the  Alcaide  ?"  asked  my  friend. 


300  NEW  GRANADA. 

"  He  is  out  in  the  street,  Senor." 

"  And  leaves  you  here  without  locking  you  in  ?" 

"What  would  be  the  use  of  locking  us  in,  where  we  can 
get  out  when  we  please?  We  could  dig  through  the  walls, 
or  break  the  rods  of  the  window ;  and  the  fence  between  the 
yard  in  the  rear  and  the  woods  beyond  would  not  stop  a 
hog." 

"  Why,  then,  do  you  not  escape  ?" 

"  It  is  against  the  law,  Senor." 

"  Evidently  this  is  wrong,"  said  I  to  my  friend.  "  A  man 
who  can  be  kept  in  this  mud  shell  ought  to  be  at  large  on  pa- 
role. It  is  a  cruel  mockery  to  shut  a  man  up  by  law  in  a  room, 
and  leave  the  doors  open." 

Most  of  these  men  had  been  charged  with  the  theft  of  a 
quantity  of  cinchona  bark.  Had  they  been  guilty,  they  would 
have  run  away.  So  this  prison  is  a  test  as  infallible  as  that 
for  witchcraft  used  to  be.  Tie  the  accused  in  a  sack,  and  throw 
her  into  a  pond :  if  she  drown,  it  will  be  a  sign  she  was  inno- 
cent. Commit  a  man  to  the  prison  of  Fusagasuga,  and  if  he 
does  not  run  away,  you  may  be  sure  he  ought  never  to  have 
been  arrested. 

All  through  these  forests  east  of  us  are  cinchona  trees.  It  is 
very  difficult  to  ascertain  any  thing  of  the  trade,  for  all  the  land 
that  bears  cinchona  is  private  property,  and  the  gatherers — 
quinquineros — often  find  it  to  their  advantage  to  take  the  bark 
to  a  man  who  does  not  own  the  land.  Even  the  legitimate 
trade  is  kept  as  secret  as  possible.  The  consequence  is,  that  I 
have  seen  the  flowers  of  but  two  cinchonas,  and  of  both  the 
bark  is  worthless.  All  my  efforts  have  only  once  enabled  me 
to  see  a  small  tree  of  a  good  kind. 

At  the  lower  end  of  the  plain  is  a  hacienda  called  Novero. 
It  has  an  extensive  patio,  and  most  of  the  family  rooms  are  ar- 
ranged around  it  on  the  ground  floor ;  but  there  is  a  second 
story  of  a  single  room,  and  the  roof  extends  over  a  considerable 
space  outside  of  the  room,  making  a  delightful  walk  in  the  open 
air.  Never  was  there  a  more  beautiful  climate  than  that  of 
Fusagasuga.  Twice  have  I  celebrated  New  Year's  here  by  bath- 
ing in  a  stream  of  delightful  temperature,  and  thinking  of  snow 
at  home.  It  is  just  at  the  upper  limits,  or  rather  above  the  con- 


WALKS  TO  THE   CHOCHO.  301 

venient  culture  of  cane,  plantains,  and  oranges,  and  for  these  I 
would  submit  to  a  slight  increase  of  heat. 

This  I  found  at  the  Chocho,  a  hacienda  of  the  late  Don  Diego 
Gomez,  three  miles  southwest  of  Fusagasuga,  on  the  banks  of 
the  Fusagasuga.  Four  walks  that  I  took  down  there  will  re- 
main for  a  long  time  as  very  sunny  spots  in  my  memory.  They 
were  almost  enough  to  make  one  forget  home  for  a  time.  I 
went  in  different  company  on  the  different  visits,  and  if  the  fair 
pedestrians  ever  read  the  paragraph  which  commends  their 
prowess  in  a  six-miles'  walk,  I  hope  they  will  forgive  this  allu- 
sion to  "  the  memory  of  past  joys  pleasant  and  mournful  to  the 
soul." 

The  picture  will  not  soon  fade  from  my  mind.  The  oak- 
crowned  mountain,  that  rises  above  Fusagasuga  on  the  east, 
sends  down  a  stream  that,  by  its  convenience,  determined  the 
location  of  the  town.  Descending  still,  it  enters  a  tangled  hol- 
low, called  the  Mague,  from  some  fine  Fourcroyas  that  grow 
there.  Farther  down,  clearings  are  made  in  this  thicket,  and 
some  cane-patches  squeezed  in,  not  for  sugar,  but  for  feed. 
Thus  it  hurries  down  to  the  Fusagasuga  at  right  angles  to  the 
river,  and  to  the  long,  straight  hill  beyond  it,  where  stands  the 
miserable  little  town  of  Tibacui — miserable,  at  least,  for  its 
drunken  priest,  who  goes  from  the  correction  of  the  stocks  to 
the  altar,  and  from  the  altar,  on  Sundays,  to  Fusagasuga  to 
gamble  and  drink.  I  saw  him  once  ride  past  me  on  the  Sab- 
'bath  drunk,  as  my  companions  said,  but  I  had  not  noticed  it. 

Fusagasuga  stands  chiefly  on  the  right  bank  of  the  little  brook, 
but  the  road  to  Tibacui  and  Mesa  (distant  39  miles  scant — but 
17  hours)  crosses  the  stream  on  a  narrow  bridge  just  below, 
and  follows  down  the  left  bank.  For  half  a  mile  the  road  is 
fenced  out  like  country  lanes  at  the  North,  but  innocent  of 
wheels.  You  pass  several  cottages  on  the  left,  among  them  one 
that  belonged  to  General  O'Leary,  the  British  minister.  The 
lane  ends  with  a  gate  as  you  enter  the  estate  of  Novero,  and 
pass  down  the  green  slope,  leaving  the  buildings  some  way  to 
your  left.  Long  and  sweet  was  the  path  down  this  sunny  slope 
till  we  came  to  some  tuna  (Opuntia)  plants,  with  ripe  red  fruit 
as  large  as  a  small  pear,  and  beset  with  fascicles  of  spines  ex- 
actly like  those  of  our  prickly-pear  at  home.  The  fruit  has 


302  NEW  GRANADA. 

neither  sweet  nor  acid  enough  to  make  it  very  good,  but  it  can 
be  eaten,  and  therefore  must  be.  A  dozen  of  them,  when  freed 
from  the  terrible  microscopic  spines,  are  not  worth  one  good 
orange  from  Fulton  Market,  and  the  removal  of  the  spines  is  no 
trifling  task ;  but,  as  the  fruit  must  be  eaten,  it  must  be  done. 
My  epicureanism  was  rewarded  with  one  persistent  little  spine 
in  my  palate,  that  defied  all  my  efforts  at  extraction,  till  I  had 
vowed  never  to  pick  and  shave  another  tuna  for  myself  or  for 
any  girl  living. 

Another  fact  was  impressed  on  me.  I  had  adopted  the  ple- 
beian chaussure,  alpargates ;  and,  as  one  of  the  long  spines  of 
a  fallen  tuna  stem  made  its  way  between  the  braids,  and  pene- 
trated deep  into  my  sole,  I  was  convinced  that,  excellent  as 
alpargates  are  for  ordinary  walking,  they  are  a  poor  defense 
against  thorns.  Farther  on  I  saw  another  plant,  that  was  re- 
markable for  sending  down  a  bunch  of  flowers  on  a  peduncle  as 
large  as  a  pack-thread,  and  six  feet  long.  The  flowers  are  fol- 
lowed by  pods  covered  with  a  velvet  of  microscopic  barbed 
spines,  and  containing  large,  round,  flat  seeds.  It  is  one  of 
several  species  of  Mucuna,  called  here  pica-pica,  and,  from  the 
form  of  the  seeds,  ox-eye — ojo  de  buey.  They  may  all  be  call- 
ed cowhage. 

The  path  descends  much  more  slowly  than  the  stream  till  it 
reaches  a  point  of  the  hill  where  it  must  almost  leap  off.  You 
involuntarily  pause  here  to  feast  your  eyes.  You  trace  the 
straight  course  of  the  Fusagasuga,  running  at  the  base  of  that 
long  hill  opposite  to  us,  without  a  gap  or  a  spur  for  15  or  20 
miles.  On  the  right  the  valley  rises  gently  till  it  reaches  the 
woods  that  cover  the  steep  ascent  to  the  Sabana,  while  far  away 
to  the  left  you  see  an  opening  where  it  empties  into  the  Suma 
Paz  just  before  reaching  the  Plains  of  the  Magdalena.  I  think 
it  was  on  the  banks  of  the  Fusagasuga  that  I  ate  my  eggs  in 
my  descent,  and  that  a  carriage-road  might  strike  it  high  up 
near  where  it  issues  from  the  woods.  The  distance  to  Bogotii 
would  be  about  the  same,  25  miles,  but  the  time  might  be  re- 
duced from  eleven  hours  down  to  six. 

At  the  foot  of  the  hill  is  a  bridge  across  the  brook,  and  an- 
other over  the  Fusagasuga,  and  then  a  little  below  is  the  Ha- 
cienda of  the  Chocho,  so  called  from  a  species  of  Erythinia,  a 


DON  DIEGO   G6MEZ.  303 

small  tree  with  beautiful  scarlet  flowers.  Seiior  Gomez  might 
have  been  an  eminent  statesman.  He  had  enough  learning  and 
talent  for  it,  and,  it  seems,  too  much  interest  and  patriotism.  He 
was  charged  with  a  complicity  with  that  attempt  to  assassinate 
Bolivar  that  failed  on  the  26th  September,  1828.  His  trial  for 
it  was  unsatisfactory  to  both  prosecution  and  defense,  and  the 
sentence  worthy  of  a  dictator.  "Forasmuch  as  nothing  ap- 
pears against  Diego  Gomez,  he  is  condemned  to  three  years'  sur- 
veillance at  Turbaco." 

"  I  am  splitting  my  brains,"  says  Don  Diego  to  the  officer 
who  was  carrying  him  to  Turbaco,  "  to  find  out  the  logic  of  that 
sentence,  Forasmuch  as  nothing  appears  against  me,  therefore 
I  am  condemned,"  &c. 

"Never  you  trouble  your  brains,"  replied  the  official;  "the 
nation  never  will  be  ruined  for  want  of  logic !  (This  is  literally 
true,  for  Bacon  never  has  supplanted  Aristotle  here.) 

Three  years  brought  great  changes.  He  left  his  lady,  Seiiora 
Josefa  Acevedo  de  Gomez,  an  estimable  poet,  worthy  of  the  com- 
panionship of  Mrs.  Hemans  and  Mrs.  Sigourney ;  he  found  her 
the  mother  of  a  babe  conceived  in  his  absence.  They  separated. 
He  became  a  sot.  She  retired  to  a  home  in  the  edge  of  the  vast 
Andine  forest,  a  few  hours  from  here,  where  she  pours  out  the 
bitterness  of  her  soul  in  touching  strains,  demanding  of  Death 
why  he  takes  the  happy  and  the  hopeful,  and  overlooks  her. 
(See  Acevedo,  in  the  Parnaso  Granadino.)  Their  estimable 
daughter  married  beneath  her  family,  it  was  said,  and,  though 
her  husband  is  a  worthy  man,  she  was  not  permitted  to  bring 
him  to  the  Chocho.  I  write  these  things  more  freely,  as  in 
these  few  days  news  has  reached  me  that  the  unhappy  husband 
and  father  has  left  this  world.  The  son-in-law  proves  a  worthy 
successor  of  Sefior  Gomez  in  the  particular  in  which  I  esteemed 
him  most — the  cultivation  of  fruit. 

I  have  said  that  gardens  are  unknown  in  New  Granada.  At 
the  Chocho  are  three,  all  with  high  walls,  and  padlocks  on  the 
gates.  Without  these,  fruit  can  not  be  cultivated.  These  gar- 
dens contain  nothing  but  perennials,  chiefly  trees,  for  monocarp- 
ous  plants  can  not  be  kept  up  where  all  labor  is  spasmodic.  As 
all  other  mammals  are  kept  out  by  hedge,  gate,  and  padlock,  the 
most  formidable  foe  that  invades  the  premises  is  the  bat.  They 


304  NEW  GKANADA. 

come  in  myriads  of  myriads,  and,  of  course,  in  the  night.  Hu- 
man weapons  are  as  powerless  against  them  as  against  locusts. 
The  pomarosa  is  their  first  choice.  It  is  a  Myrtate  fruit,  per- 
haps Eugenia  Jambos,  of  the  size  of  a  small  peach,  and  with  a 
slight  flavor  of  wintergreen.  Between  bats  and  children,  I  nev- 
er expect  to  see  a  ripe  one.  In  default  of  this,  they  even  attack 
the  mango — Mangifera  Indica.  This  fruit,  of  the  shape  and 
size  of  a  pear,  but  with  the  large  end  attached  to  the  stem,  is  a 
decided  favorite  in  the  tropics,  though  I  can  not  forget  how  it 
has  been  described  as  a  mixture  of  tow  and  turpentine.  You 
must  learn  to  overlook  these  two  ingredients,  which  are  never 
entirely  absent,  but  not  always  prominent. 

Another  fruit  that  I  saw  here  for  the  first  time  is  the  madro- 
no, Theobroma  arborescens.  It  is  built  on  the  plan  of  the  ca- 
cao, but,  as  it  is  no  larger  than  a  plum,  it  has  but  two  or  three 
large  seeds,  and  a  scant  pleasant  pulp  that  scarce  pays  the 
trouble  of  eating.  It  is  from  a  fine,  handsome  tree.  Of  oranges 
there  was  no  end  to  the  variety.  Dr.  Gomez  had  some  slips  of 
red  currant  that  he  was  anxious  to  make  live.  He  had  several 
date-palms  growing,  but  they  were  not  old  enough  to  be  suro 
of  their  sex.  Some  fruit-trees  I  have  seen  nowhere  else,  and 
therefore  pass  them  unmentioned  and  undescribed,  for  what  is 
common  must  take  the  precedence  of  what  is  rare. 

These  gardens  are  famous  for  snails,  Bulimus  oblongus,  that 
are  as  large  as  a  goose-egg,  and  themselves  lay  eggs  as  large  as 
those  of  sparrows.  By  the  kindness  of  the  family  I  secured 
quite  a  number  of  them,  in  the  faint  hope  that  they  may  reach 
the  seaboard. 

The  festivals  still  continued :  the  28th  of  December  is  the 
Innocents'  day,  or  the  commemoration  of  the  children  slaughter- 
ed by  Herod.  Persons  take  the  liberty  of  acting  in  some  re- 
spects like  children  in  honor  of  the  day,  particularly  in  what  we 
would  call  April-fooling.  When  a  person  is  victimized,  he  is 
told  to  consider  himself  an  Innocent — "  tengase  por  Inocente." 
The  same  idea  runs  through  some  satirical  poetry.  One,  for 
instance,  devotes  a  stanza  to  our  friend  Lopez.  In  English  and 
Spanish  it  might  run  thus : 

El  que  por  ser  Presidente  Let  him  who  thought  the  land  to  rule 

Creyo  asi  gozar  del  mando,  When  he  became  a  President, 

Y  es  juguete  de  algun  bando  But  finds  himself  a  party's  tool, 

Tengase  por  Inocente.  Regard  himself  an  Innocent. 


INNOCENTS'  DAY.  305 

I  shall  not  to  describe  the  grotesque  masquerades  that  held 
possession  of  the  streets  by  day  and  partially  at  night.  The 
Yankees  can  beat  them  when  they  try ;  but  the  masquerade 
ball  of  the  evening  did  not  deserve  the  name.  A  man  who  had 
sewed  some  bands  of  white  on  the  seams  of  his  clothes,  or  a 
lady  who  had  dressed  her  hair  in  calico,  was  considered  to  be 
in  masquerade.  It  is  noteworthy  that  this,  which  I  intend  shall 
be  the  last  ball  I  ever  attend  in  my  life,  was  held  in  the  very 
same  house  where  I  attended  my  first,  and  from  which  I  went 
to  cock-mass  369  days  before.  They  are  essentially  dull  and 
tedious,  and  even  the  first  did  not  pay  me  for  the  trouble  by 
gratifying  any  curiosity,  and  all  since  have  been  visited  only 
from  a  sense  of  duty  to  my  readers,  to  see  with  my  own  eyes 
what  I  describe. 

It  was  Saturday  night,  and  I  fell  into  conversation  with  the 
priest,  who  never  fails  to  attend. 

"  Do  you  not  need  to  be  preparing  for  the  Sabbath  ?"  I  asked 
him. 

"  I  am  preparing  for  it,"  he  replied. 

"  How !     Do  you  call  this  preparing  ?" 

"  Why,  the  mass  on  fiestas  is  much  later  than  on  other  days, 
and  I  should  be  very  hungry  were  I  not  to  eat  just  before  mid- 
night, as  it  is  forbidden  to  say  mass  after  eating." 

"  And  if  there  be  no  ball  ?" 

"  Then  I  go  to  the  billiard  saloon,  which  is  always  open." 

"But  if  you  swallow  a  single  mouthful  after  midnight?" 

"  I  take  care  about  that,  for  I  have  a  good  watch — a  rare  ar- 
ticle in  this  country,  you  know ;  but  if  I  should  find  I  had 
done  so,  I  would  not  consecrate  the  hostia  I  consumed  at  that 
mass." 

"  I  understand :  you  would  say,  in  place  of  the  words  of  con- 
secration, Panis  eg,  etpanis  manebis — bread  thou  art,  and  bread 
thou  shalt  continue  to  be.  But  would  that  mass  have  any  effi- 
cacy for  those  that  heard  it  ?" 

"None  at  all.  But  I  would  not  say  those  words ;  they  are 
a  mockery.  I  might  say  even  the  precise  words  of  consecra- 
tion with  the  special  intention  of  not  consecrating,  and  it  would 
not  be  consecrated." 

Quite  a  group  had  now  gathered  round  us,  for  it  was  in  the 

U 


306  NEW   GRANADA. 

interval  between  two  sets,  and  I  changed  from  Spanish  into 
Latin,  and  proceeded :  "  I  wish  to  ask  you  one  more  question. 
Do  your  canons,  like  those  of  Moses,  require  abstinence  from 
women,  as  well  as  from  food,  previous  to  officiating  ?" 

"  The  canons  require  that  at  all  times,  and  therefore  contain 
no  special  injunction  on  this  point.  An  infringement  does  not 
invalidate  the  mass." 

"  Then,  an  hour  hence,  unchastity  would  be  a  less  sin  than 
the  eating  of  a  cracker  ?"  * 

But  it  was  too  evident  that  our  Latin  was  understood  by  the 
by-standers,  from  the  close  analogy  of  the  Spanish,  and  I  could 
press  the  good  priest  no  farther. 

Street  gambling  of  various  kinds,  by  the  light  of  flaring  tal- 
low candles,  helped  to  add  to  the  liveliness  of  the  nights.  Most 
of  these  games  appear  peculiar.  A  favorite  game  was  called  lo- 
teria.  I  could  look  over  the  heads  of  all  the  company  that  sur- 
rounded the  little  table,  where  each  of  a  definite  number  of  play- 
ers had  staked  his  cuartillo,  and  had  a  card  with  a  series  of  pic- 
tures on  it.  The  pictures  were  in  different  order  on  every  card. 
The  same  pictures,  on  blocks,  were  in  the  dealer's  bag.  He 
puts  in  his  hand  and  draws  out  one,  and  calls  out,  in  a  loud, 
drawling  tone,  "Chulo  chupando  tripo" — "Gallinazo  eating  en- 
trail."  Each  player  lays  a  grain  of  maize  on  his  copy  of  that 
interesting  picture.  The  dealer  lays  down  the  block  and  draws 
another,  always  using  several  words  in  proclaiming  it.  At 
length  a  lucky  fellow  cries  out  "  Loteria !"  He  has  four  grains 
in  a  row.  The  dealer  ascertains  that  the  four  corresponding 
blocks  have  been  drawn,  gives  him  all  the  cuartillos  except  one, 
and  makes  up  a  new  game. 

I  can  not  think  the  remark  of  a  traveler  (Duane)  correct,  that 
the  Bogotanos  come  to  these  places  to  gamble,  because  they 
are  ashamed  to  do  it  in  Bogota.  I  fear  it  can  not  be  denied  to 
be  a  national  vice,  too  common  to  excite  shame.  They  come 
here  to  enjoy  themselves,  and  gamble  because  they  enjoy  the 
occupation. 

I  must  leave  Fusagasuga,  but  I  should  do  too  much  violence 
to  myself  were  I  to  do  so  without  mention  of  the  family  to 
whom  I  owe  more  than  I  can  ever  repay.  Dr.  Joseph  Blag- 
borne  came  out  from  Great  Britain  in  the  service  of  the  Santa 


AN  ENGLISH  FAMILY.  307 

Ana  Mining  Company,  which  he  left  on  account  of  a  difference 
with  the  resident  agent,  I  believe.  He  practiced  medicine  a  while 
in  Bogota,  but,  when  he  became  a  citizen  of  New  Granada,  he 
received  a  beautiful  piece  of  ground  two  hours  from  here,  and 
is  bringing  it  into  cultivation.  He  is  beloved,  but  not  appreci- 
ated here.  They  know  him  to  be  benevolent  and  kind,  consid- 
erate of  the  feelings  of  the  poorest,  but  they  do  not  suspect  how 
much  of  thorough,  real  education  there  is  sheltered  in  that  cot- 
tage ;  they  understand  the  gentleman,  but  not  the  scholar. 

But  he  is  not  alone.  Mrs.  Blagborne  and  six  interesting 
daughters,  as  thoroughly  English  as  if  they  had  been  born  in 
the  Fast-anchored  Isle  or  in  Boston,  make  the  weary  traveler 
forget  for  a  while  that  seas  roll  between  himself  and  any  land 
of  homes.  You  would  little  suspect  that  they  had  some  of 
them  never  seen  a  school,  or  a  master,  or  a  modern  school-book. 
In  the  cultivation  of  their  minds,  his  little  garden  at  home,  and 
that  beautiful  Eden  guaranteed  to  him  by  the  most  liberal,  if  it 
be  not  the  strongest  nor  richest  government  on  earth,  Dr.  Blag- 
borne  finds  that  pleasure  which  gayer  scenes  and  the  rounds  of 
fashionable  folly  can  never  afford. 

Dear  little  Alice !  what  a  sunbeam  you  have  been  across  my 
path !  How  happy  have  been  the  hours  we  have  spent  in  the 
thickets  where  heat  and  cold  are  alike  unknown,  where  your 
quick  eye  hunted  out  for  me  the  delicate  fern,  the  minute  pas- 
sion-flower, and  the  well-hidden  bird's-nest.  And  when  a  rare 
mistletoe  hung  provokingly  just  out  of  my  reach,  don't  you  re- 
member how  the  forty  inches  of  your  little  form,  added  to  the 
height  of  my  shoulders,  just  brought  the  fragile  boughs  of  the 
parasite  within  the  reach  of  your  fingers  and  my  herbarium  ? 
And  now  I  am  not  ashamed  to  say  that  of  all  the  inhabitants 
of  this  half  continent  I  love  you  best. 


NEW  GRANADA. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

THE   BRIDGE   OF  PANDI. 

Hacienda  del  Retire. — Slow  Horse. — Probable  Origin  of  the  Bridge. — Humble 
Posada. — Bad  Priests. — The  Bridge. — Cemetery  of  Pandi. — District  Prison. 
— A  warm  Walk  and  cold  Ride. — Dull  Horse  and  fragile  Sticks. — Problem 
of  Achilles  and  the  Tortoise  exemplified. 

ON  my  way  from  Fusagasuga  to  Pandi,  I  made  a  visit  with 
Dr.  Blagborne  to  his  Haciendo  del  Retiro.  It  is  a  few  miles 
south  of  Fusagasuga,  and  off  the  road  to  Pandi.  It  is  a  cove 
scooped  out  of  the  mountains,  a  beautiful  gentle  slope,  but  so 
shut  in  by  abrupt  and  broken  ground  that  ten  rods  of  fence  ef- 
fectually protect  a  thousand  acres  from  invasion.  Bananas  still 
grow  abundantly  here,  where  the  tall,  hollow  stems  of  Cecropia 
peltata  have  fallen  to  make  room  for  them.  The  yuca  must 
stand  here  near  its  upper  limit,  but  the  potato  and  arracacha 
are  in  their  perfection.  The  ground  rises  steadily  to  the  east, 
covered  with  huge  trees,  that  must  include  precious  cabinet- 
woods,  as  well  as  an  unknown  quantity  of  cinchona.  To  the 
west  the  scene  is  different.  You  now  look  entirely  over  the 
hill  beyond  the  Fusagasuga,  and,  when  the  weather  is  clear,  the 
awful  peak  of  snowy  Tolima  stands  disclosed.  But  of  the  near- 
er world  it  is  only  a  little  that  can  be  seen  from  here,  and  of 
human  labors  Dr.  Blagborne  can  say,  as  he  stands  here,  "  I  am 
monarch  of  all  I  survey." 

I  engaged,  as  guide  and  companion  to  Pandi,  a  hair-brained 
young  fellow,  an  employe  of  the  gobernacion  at  Bogota,  as  he 
tells  me.  He  regretted  not  having  gone  in  his  military  coat,  to 
show  me  how  the  people  would  take  him  for  a  recruiting  officer, 
and  fly  to  the  woods.  He  mounted  himself  on  an  animal  that  had 
two  faults  :  he  was  both  lazy  and  lame,  if  not  even  worn  out 
— destroncado.  My  own  beast,  thanks  to  a  fair  friend,  a  much 
better  judge  of  horse-flesh  than  I,  who  kindly  secured  it  for  me, 
was  as  good  as  need  be.  We  made  an  early  start — that  is,  we 
were  off  before  ten,  and  were  soon  on  the  edge  of  the  inclined 


ORIGIN  OF  THE  BRIDGE.  309 

plane  of  Fusagasuga,  where  it  is  cut  off  by  a  large  stream  com- 
ing down  from  the  hills. 

Pandi  is  west  of  south  of  Fusagasuga,  distant  from  25  to  30 
miles,  over  spurs  of  the  left-hand  mountain,  while  that  on  the 
other  side  of  the  Fusagasuga  is  uniform  in  its  general  direction, 
and  with  few  projections.  Each  valley  the  road  passes  is  sure 
to  have  a  stream  running  to  the  right,  where  they  unite  with 
each  other  as  they  flow  westward. 

But  now,  from  the  summit  of  a  ridge,  we  can  look  over  a  low 
spot  in  the  left-hand  mountain  into  an  immense  valley  beyond, 
lying  between  that  and  a  still  inner  range.  Examine  that  spot, 
and  it  appears  as  if  a  large  gap  had  been  broken  in  the  mount- 
ain, as  by  a  blow  from  this  side.  What  remains  has  the  same 
slope  on  this  side  as  the  rest  of  the  mountain,  but  on  the  other 
side  the  descent  is  steep  and  precipitous.  The  summit  ridge 
there  must  be  rather  sharp. 

But  the  basin  within,  where  does  it  discharge  its  waters? 
Not  to  the  north  of  this,  I  am  certain,  or  I  must  have  seen  the 
pass,  and  crossed  the  stream  between  here  and  Bogota.  To  the 
east?  No,  the  eastern  ridge  here  is  still  higher.  To  the  south? 
That  does  not  seem  impossible,  but  if  not  so,  no  outlet  is  visi- 
ble from  here.  If  there  be  no  southern  outlet,  the  whole  must 
once  have  been  a  mountain  lake  perhaps  thousands  of  feet  deep. 
Over  this  sharp  ridge  would  be  a  good  outlet  for  it,  and  if  it  be 
of  the  horizontal  sandstone  we  often  meet  here,  it  might  wear 
down  rapidly.  It  might  be  cut  down  hundreds  of  feet,  and 
even  so  deep  as  to  drain  the  lake  without  increasing  in  width. 

But  can  you  see  any  evidence  of  the  existence  of  such  a 
stream  ?  Not  in  the  least,  although  a  long  space  of  the  mount- 
ain side  lies  clear  in  view.  Such  a  narrow  channel,  and  so  deep 
as  this  would  be,  must  be  exposed  to  land-slides.  Such  rocks 
as  reach  the  bottom  must  share  the  fate  of  the  original  rock 
there,  be  pulverized  and  carried  down.  But  suppose  a  mass  of 
rocks  should  slide  down  too  large  to  descend  the  narrow  chasm? 
This  might  well  be,  and  then  we  should  have  a  Natural  Bridge. 
Let  us  see. 

But  I  was  not  destined  to  see  that  day.  Jose's  horse  fairly 
gave  out,  and  I  mounted  him  on  mine,  and  pursued  my  way  on 
foot  much  more  comfortably  and  rapidly.  While  daylight  last- 


310  NEW  GBANADA. 

ed  I  enjoyed  myself.  Among  other  bushes,  I  noticed  a  Euphor- 
bia of  poplar-like  leaves,  called,  on  account  of  its  very  poison- 
ous nature,  by  the  same  name  as  the  manchinael-tree — manza- 
nilla.  I  think  it  is  E.  eotinifolia. 

Each  hill  was  lower  than  the  preceding,  and,  thus  descend- 
ing, I  reached  Pandi  at  about  8  at  night,  and  found  posada  at 
the  house  of  the  alcalde.  It  is  a  tienda,  with  a  third  room  ad- 
joining the  parlor.  A  miniature  chicken  and  a  very  clean 
wooden  spoon  (no  knife  or  fork)  were  set  on  for  my  dinner,  and 
for  my  bed  was  placed  an  ox-hide,  afterward  exchanged  for  a  bor- 
rowed hammock.  I  asked  for  a  chair  to  be  put  in  the  piazza, 
as  this  place  is  lower  than  Fusagasuga,  and  the  night  was  warm. 
They  had  no  chair,  so  they  put  out  a  bench,  ten  feet  long,  with 
no  back  to  it. 

Pandi  has  a  church,  but,  at  present,  no  cura.  They  sent 
away  their  last  for  various  reasons ;  among  others,  chasing  one 
of  his  flock  with  a  knife  when  he  was  drunk.  The  people  of 
Pandi  were  once  cursed  with  the  present  incumbent  of  Tibacui. 
It  is  a  great  defect  of  the  Romish  system  that  it  has  no  way  of 
disposing  of  a  bad  priest.  It  can  convert  him  to  no  other  pur- 
pose, as  we  do  a  razor  that  will  not  shave.  It  can  not  kill  him, 
as  we  do  a  horse  with  a  broken  leg.  It  can  only  maintain  him 
as  a  gentleman  at  large,  or  make  a  missionary  of  him. 

But  the  bridge.  Well,  morning  has  come,  and,  having  taken 
a  cup  of  chocolate,  we  will  set  off.  The  distance  is  a  mile  or 
more,  in  the  same  direction  as  yesterday,  crossing  in  the  way 
another  stream,  running,  like  all  the  others,  to  our  right.  The 
bridge  itself,  and  the  narrow  chasm  that  it  blocks  over  rather 
than  spans,  is  sometimes  passed  without  seeing  it.  This  nar- 
now  canon,  as  Fremont  would  call  it,  is  said  to  be  300  feet 
deep,  with  perpendicular  walls.  Its  general  width  appears  to 
be  from  sixteen  to  twenty  feet.  I  do  not  regard  it  as  impossi- 
ble that  a  human  leap  might  clear  the  gulf.  The  structure  is, 
as  I  intimated,  in  horizontal  sandstone.  The  direction  of  the 
stream  was  N.  by  W.,  or  13  degrees  west  of  north.  Doubtless 
the  bridge  was  the  work  of  a  land-slide,  and  so  extensive  must 
it  have  been  that  it  has  left  four  or  five  rods  of  the  chasm  cov- 
ered over.  Travelers  tell  you  of  how  many  stones  the  arch  is 
composed.  I  should  place  no  reliance  on  any  such  statement, 
had  not  Humboldt  seemed  to  confirm  it. 


NATURAL   BRIDGE.  311 

You  are  told  that  the  lowest  bridge  is  made  by  three  enor- 
mous stones,  that  were  falling  simultaneously,  and  caught  in 
the  form  of  an  arch  there,  the  middle  one  being  largest  and 
highest. 

Baron  Gros,  who  has  spent  more  time  here  than  any  other 
intelligent  man,  regards  this  lower  bridge  as  a  single  cubical 
stone,  too  large  to  enter  the  chasm.  Let  us  call  it  a  stone  of 
forty  feet  by  forty-six;  the  northern  end,  down  stream,  much  the 
lowest.  Exact  observations  can  only  be  made  from  beneath, 
for  it  is  covered  with  vegetation  so  as  to  resemble  part  of  an 
ordinary  dry  ravine.  I  am  inclined  to  think  there  must  be 
more  than  one  stone,  for  near  the  middle  of  it  is  a  hole  two  feet 
in  diameter,  through  which  we  threw  large  stones  down  into 
the  water. 

Ascending  to  the  upper  edge  of  the  lower  bridge,  you  creep 
under  an  enormous  flat  stone,  resting  on  the  banks  on  both  sides, 
and  entirely  free  from  the  lower  bridge.  This  enormous  flat 
stone  makes  the  second  bridge,  which  may  have  been  separated 
from  that  beneath  it  by  earth  at  the  epoch  in  which  the  whole 
mass  descended  together.  This  earth  has  since  disappeared, 
leaving  the  stone,  with  its  ends  resting  on  the  opposite  sides  of 
the  chasm,  while  the  rest  of  the  slide  descended  partly  into  it. 
So  we  have  a  bridge  over  a  bridge.  It  extends  a  little  farther 
up  stream,  so  as  to  cover  the  upper  edge  of  the  lower  bridge. 

On  this  broad  stone  lies  a  large  quantity  of  earth,  put  there, 
I  conjecture,  to  make  a  roadway,  but  this  being  found  too  low, 
a  wooden  bridge  was  built  above  of  poles,  covered  with  earth,  as 
usual,  and,  what  is  unusual,  protected  by  railings.  One  of  these 
is  necessary,  for  the  broad  stone  and  the  wooden  bridge  are  at 
the  very  upper  edge  of  the  land-slide,  so  that  from  the  upper 
side  of  the  bridge  you  can  lean  over  the  railing,  and  look  per- 
pendicularly down  to  the  roaring  river  beneath.  The  Suma 
Paz  would  be  a  large  stream  if  flowing  in  an  ordinary  channel 
through  a  plain — smaller  than  the  Hudson,  Connecticut,  or  Del- 
aware, but  as  large  as  the  Housatonic,  Mohawk,  or  Merrimack. 
Humboldt  supposes  that  here,  swift  as  it  is — a  perfect  horizon- 
tal cataract — it  is  about  twenty  feet  deep.  I  have  examined 
the  river  below,  and  think  it  quite  probable. 

I  did  not  go  below,  thanks  to  my  horse  and  other  detentions, 


312  NEW  GRANADA. 

which  rendered  it  impossible.  Were  the  bed  of  the  river  but 
passable,  a  descent  would  amply  repay  all  trouble ;  but,  besides 
the  fearful  suspense,  with  300  feet  of  water  beneath  you,  you 
would  find  it  impossible  to  pass  from  spot  to  spot,  even  on  the 
same  side  of  the  stream.  It  is  a  task  for  a  samphire  gatherer. 

On  the  shelves  of  the  rocks,  a  little  above  the  water  (perhaps 
more  than  half  way  up),  I  saw  the  nests  of  the  guacharo  in  great 
abundance.  These  nests  appeared  to  be  cones  of  dried  mud, 
but  even  the  little  Dollond  telescope  I  carried  would  give  me 
but  imperfect  data  by  such  a  vertical  view.  On  throwing  stones 
down,  the  birds  were  aroused  in  immense  numbers.  I  can  not 
learn  that  a  specimen  has  ever  been  procured  from  this  spot, 
and  it  may  not  be  the  guacharo.  It  is  supposed  to  be  as  large 
as  a  crow. 

The  bridge  is  at  an  altitude  considerably  below  Pandi,  for  the 
thermometer  at  10  o'clock  was  near  80°,  higher  than  I  have  seen 
it  since  leaving  Honda. 

On  my  return  from  the  bridge,  I  visited  the  most  desolate 
cemetery  I  ever  saw.  It  was  an  ellipse,  that  had  been  inclosed 
by  a  thatch  shed,  now  broken  down  in  some  places,  so  that,  as 
well  as  the  chapel,  it  furnishes  to  cattle  a  shelter  from  the  sun. 
There  are  no  bovedas — no  monuments :  every  grave  is  trampled 
down  by  cattle,  and  the  area  is  filled  with  long  grass,  and  all  as 
neglected  as  the  tombs  of  Idumea. 

On  my  return  to  Pandi,  after  using  again  the  wooden  spoon, 
I  visited  the  District  Prison.  I  spoke  before  of  the  eight  na- 
tional prisons  of  three  kinds,  and  the  thirty-one  provincial  pris- 
ons, which,  however,  contained  (August  31st,  1851)  but  forty- 
three  prisoners.  The  system  requires  also  99  canton  prisons 
and  756  district  and  hamlet  prisons,  making  a  total  of  894  of 
these  benevolent  institutions  for  a  population  of  2,243,730,  or 
a  prison  for  every  2510  souls.  That  of  Pandi  occupies  the 
two  ends  of  the  Alcaldia.  Of  course,  they  never  shut  up  a 
man  in  these  card-houses:  it  would  be  ridiculous.  They  lay 
down  a  hide  for  him  to  lie  on,  and  put  one  leg  in  the  stocks. 
This  would  seem  no  joke  to  an  American  who  had  not  yet  had 
his  trial,  especially  if,  with  this  slight  impediment  to  his  mar- 
keting and  cooking,  it  was  still  to  be  done  at  his  expense,  or 
not  at  all.  The  treatment  of  different  prisons  is  different.  In 


PRISON  AT  PANDI. 

Bogota  they  feed  the  poor,  but  not  sufficiently.  The  rules  of 
the  different  provinces  are  different  in  this  respect,  nor  can  I, 
by  any  possibility,  come  at  any  general  statement  of  them.  I 
think  in  this  province  (for  the  canton  of  Fusagasuga  was  then 
in  a  province  of  Tequendama,  since  reunited  with  Bogota)  they 
give  them  water,  and  nothing  more. 

I  started  on  my  return  about  11,  leaving  Jose,  my  horse,  and 
my  gun  to  follow  soon  after.  So  they  did,  that  veracious  indi- 
vidual informs  me ;  but  I  waited  for  him  at  various  points  of 
the  road,  and  when,  unfortunately,  I  came  to  the  other  horse,  my 
course  was  slower  still.  I  wore  out  all  the  riding-sticks  I  could 
find.  I  begged  a  boy  that  overtook  me  on  foot  to  cut  me  some 
tough  ones,  but  they  wore  out  like  asparagus  sprouts.  I  finally 
got  tired  of  whipping,  and,  I  suspect,  the  poor  brute  tired  of  be- 
ing whipped.  I  at  last  required  no  more  of  him  than  that  he 
should  keep  stepping,  and  with  a  moderate  use  of  sticks  as  long 
as  they  lasted,  I  contrived  to  keep  him  up  to  the  minimum  of 
continuous  motion. 

It  was  quite  warm  when  I  left  Pandi  at  11  A.M.  I  started 
in  my  coolest  trim,  leaving  all  superfluous  clothing  for  Jose  to 
bring  on.  Now,  as  the  sun  was  descending  and  I  rising,  the 
cold  began  to  penetrate  to  my  bones,  but  I  had  no  way  to  keep 
warm  but  by  my  attentions  to  my  horse.  As  Jose  had  also  my 
money,  I  was  under  no  temptations  to  extravagance,  even  had  I 
been  willing  to  delay  for  food. 

Long  after  dark,  I  arrived  at  a  bridge  that  I  had  noticed  be- 
fore as  over  quite  a  stream,  and  so  long,  so  narrow,  so  high,  and 
so  slender  as  to  make  one's  flesh  creep.  I  have  had  to  ride 
horses  blind  of  one  eye  over  such  bridges,  but  that  is  dangerous : 
they  always  take  such  one-sided  views  of  things.  Of  course 
these  narrow  bridges  have  no  railings,  for  if  they  had,  the  bag- 
gage-mules could  not  go  between  them,  as  they  would  be  too 
near  together.  I  had  no  difficulty  in  keeping  my  terrapin  on 
the  narrow  way  over  the  trembling  fabric  till,  after  a  long,  long 
while,  I  no  longer  felt  the  ground  sway  under  his  reluctant  steps. 

I  arrived  in  Fusagasuga  between  9  and  10,  having  lost  about 
half  a  mile  for  want  of  a  guide.  Jose  arrived  10  minutes  later. 
He  "  started  about  half  an  hour  after  me,  came  on  smoothly  and 
rapidly,"  and  to  this  day  "it  is  a  mystery  to  him  why  he  did 
not  overtake  me." 


314  NEW  GEANADA. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

IBAGUE. 

Sugar-mill. — Boqneron. — Ferry  over  the  Suma  Paz. — Melgar. — Immersion. — 
Custard  by  a  Chemist. — A  Ford. — Inquisitiveness. — Equivocal  Generation. — 
Crossing  the  Magdalena. — Strait  and  narrow  Way. — Espinal. — Live  Snake. — 
Late  Breakfast. — Conscience  at  a  Ferry. — Ibague. — Schools,  Books,  and  Stud- 
ies.— The  Priest  and  the  Cock-pit. — Extreme  Unction,  Coffin,  and  Grave. — 
Provincial  Paper.  —  Blockhead  Legislators. — Taxation. — Legislative  Asses 
nearer  Home. 

BEASTS  are  not  dear  at  Fusagasuga  when  the  right  persons 
look  for  them.  I  paid  to  Pandi,  two  days,  60  and  80  cents  ;  to 
Bogota,  for  a  week's  absence,  $1  20 ;  and  to  Ibague,  five  days' 
journey  and  back  empty,  $4  each.  Ibague  lies  on  the  west- 
ern verge  of  the  valley  of  the  Magdalena,  about  75  miles,  air 
line,  west  of  Fusagasuga.  To  reach  it  I  must  descend  to  within 
about  700  feet  of  the  sea-level,  and  pass  through  the  torrid  zone. 
What  sufferings  I  must  endure  from  heat !  What  anacondas 
and  boas,  jaguars  and  pumas,  I  must  kill  or  run  away  from ! 
What  perils  from  rattlesnakes,  robbers,  scorpions,  centipedes, 
and  other  creatures  of  that  ilk,  I  must  encounter !  I  resolved 
to  encounter  all  these  perils  on  foot — yes,  absolutely  on  foot, 
contrary  to  the  advice  of  every  friend  I  could  consult.  All  urged 
me  to  abandon  the  idea.  I  was  to  be  seized  by  fever ;  killed 
by  heat ;  used  up  by  fatigue,  and  exterminated  generally.  We 
shall  see. 

I  took  an  early  start  from  Fusagasuga  on  Tuesday,,  llth  Jan- 
uary, with  two  good  baggage-mules  and  a  good  peon.  Said 
good  peon  failed  to  come  in  season,  and  my  start  was  early  only 
comparatively  speaking ;  that  is,  I  rose  at  4,  and  left  a  little  af- 
ter 10.  I  had  provided  myself  with  bread  and  chocolate  for  five 
days,  and  a  good-sized  fowl — dear  little  Alice's  purchase.  Some 
meat  was  sent  me,  but  it  looked  so  green  and  smelled  so  strong 
that  I  sent  it  back,  preferring  to  take  my  chance. 

My  first  day's  journey  was  on  that  inclined  plane  on  the  up- 
per eastern  end  of  which  Fusagasuga  stands.  On  my  right  I 


LA  PUERTA.  315 

had  the  River  Fusagasuga,  and  beyond}  a  chain  of  mountains  al- 
most without  spurs.  On  my  left  was  a  stream  formed  by  the 
union  of  all  the  streams  I  passed  on  my  way  to  Pandi,  all  of 
which  I  then  supposed  flowed  separately  into  the  Fusagasuga. 
Beyond  this,  on  the  south,  was  a  continual  succession  of  spurs 
of  the  eastern  branch  of  the  Andes. 

This  plane  is  broken  across  in  one  place  by  a  deep  depression, 
from  which  you  rise  to  La  Puerta,  the  hacienda  of  Don  Lucas 
Escobar.  I  had  been  before  at  his  trapiche  or  sugar-mill,  one 
of  the  best  in  the  land.  I  know  of  but  three  that  go  by  water. 
That  at  Cuni  may  be  better  than  this.  Senor  Escobar's  rollers 
are  of  iron,  horizontal,  and  three  in  number.  They  are  turned 
by  an  overshot  wheel,  and  the  juice  runs  directly  down  into  the 
kettles,  where  it  is  boiled  by  the  waste  cane — basajo. 

All  the  cane  is  brought  on  the  backs  of  mules,  and  the  num- 
ber of  mules  so  employed  is  considerable,  as  the  field  is  enor- 
mous. The  chimney  is  built  at  a  distance  from  the  house,  and 
is  very  tall.  The  horizontal  flue  dries  the  fuel.  Don  Lucas 
takes  the  Correo  de  Ultramar,  published  in  Paris.  It  is  so 
rare  to  find  a  man  who  takes  a  paper  here  that  the  fact  is  worth 
mentioning. 

The  house  at  La  Puerta  stands  on  a  very  pretty  table  of  land, 
at  the  foot  of  which,  toward  the  Fusagasuga,  lie  the  cane-fields 
and  mill.  It  is  not  a  pretty  house,  but  rather  a  collection  of 
huts.  The  plain  on  which  it  stands  slopes  to  the  west.  It  is 
very  uniform  in  character,  grassy,  stony,  and  bosky.  The  whole 
day  appeared  like  a  walk  for  pleasure  in  a  park,  only  the  steady, 
gradual  descent  seemed  too  good  to  last — too  much  like  the 
broad  and  easy  road  we  are  taught  to  shun. 

My  downward  way  had  an  unexpected  termination,  like  many 
another.  The  path  entered  a  clump  of  trees,  and  in  a  single 
rod  I  found  myself  almost  surrounded  by  an  abyss.  I  was  on 
a  point  of  land  which  had  narrowed  imperceptibly,  till  before 
me  lay  the  Boqueron.  This  gorge  appeared  from  Fusagasuga 
like  a  narrow  plain  between  two  hills,  for  the  spot  where  I  now 
stood  seemed  a  part  of  it.  Now  it  lay  beneath  me,  a  narrow, 
crooked  chasm,  just  admitting  a  river  to  pass  it. 

I  descended,  crossed  the  united  streams  from  the  mountain 
spurs  by  a  bridge  of  poles,  and  in  a  few  rods  farther  came  to  the 


316  NEW  GRANADA. 

Suma  Paz  itself,  and  waited  at  the  ferry  for  my  mules.  I  sup- 
pose this  ferry  is  two  or  three  leagues  below  the  Natural  Bridge. 
The  stream  itself  is  not  so  mild  as  to  merit  the  name  of  Perfect 
Peace,  which  it  borrows  from  the  awful  mountain  height  in 
which  it  rises.  Here,  perhaps,  is  the  only  spot  above  its  junc- 
tion with  the  Fusagasuga  where  it  would  admit  a  boat.  I 
found  it  here  quite  rapid,  broad,  and  over  my  head.  Just  be- 
low, after  receiving  the  stream  I  crossed,  it  unites  with  the  Fu- 
sagasuga, and  below  the  junction  bears  both  names.  It  pre- 
serves rather  the  direction  of  the  Fusagasuga,  but  the  Suma 
Paz  furnishes  much  the  larger  body  of  water.  As  a  whole,  the 
junction  of  these  three  rivers  resembles  Harper's  Ferry,  perhaps 
the  most  romantic  spot  in  the  United  States. 

.  A  Granadan  ferry  is  a  serious  event  in  a  day's  journey.  The 
mules  are  to  be  unloaded  and  compelled  to  swim,  and  this  is 
said  to  fatigue  them  very  much.  The  baggage  is  to  be  placed 
in  a  canoe  and  ferried  across  ;  all  is  again  to  be  adjusted  to  the 
backs  of  the  beasts.  The  more  beasts,  of  course,  the  worse  the 
detention.  Now  it  fortunately  came  just  at  night,  and  the  re- 
loading was  but  partial.  The  fare  is  generally  so  high  as  to  be 
something  of  an  object  to  the  treasury,  to  which  it  falls.  Here 
it  was  a  half  dime  for  each  person  and  mule-load. 

We  slept  better  for  having  the  ferry  behind  us.  There  were 
two  houses  on  the  bank,  and  Roque  selected  the  largest.  My 
chicken  and  chocolate  were  placed  on  the  fire  as  soon  as  the 
mules  were  put  at  ease,  and  I  finished  my  dinner  before  dark. 
I  had  cut  some  candles  into  three  pieces ;  one  of  these  I  now 
lighted,  and  read  till  I  was  sleepy,  slung  my  hammock,  and 
found  myself  more  comfortable  in  it  than  I  could  have  been  in 
any  bed  in  New  York.  Various  hides  were  laid  down  on  the 
earthen  floor  for  the  beds  of  the  family  and  my  peon.  This  is 
the  bed  of  the  Granadan  peasant,  and  he  sleeps  on  it  in  the 
clothes  he  wore  in  the  day,  and  with  no  other  devotions  than 
crossing  himself.  Their  practice  of  smoking  in  bed  is  very 
disagreeable  to  me. 

I  rose  at  daylight,  my  chocolate  was  made  at  once,  and  while 
the  mules  were  loading  I  set  out.  As  I  intimated,  I  had  to  rise 
out  of  the  gulf  where  I  slept.  This  was  pleasant  enough  for 

me,  but  a  horrible  thing  for  the  poor  mules. 


BOQUEKON  DE  SUMA  PAZ.  317 

At  length  I  reached  a  point  where  I  must  take  a  last  look  at 
Fusagasuga.  Beneath  me  lay  the  junctions  of  the  three  rivers, 
and  the  narrow  channel  by  which  they  made  their  way  to  Mag- 
dalena.  Beyond  lay  the  sloping  plain  on  which  I  journeyed  yes- 
terday, and  at  the  farther  end  the  mountains  which  formed  the 
abutment  to  the  plain  of  Bogota.  Far  to  the  right  I  could  just 
distinguish  the  walls  of  the  basin  from  which  the  Suma  Paz 
passes  by  its  deep  channel  beneath  the  Bridge  of  Pandi. 

On  the  left,  the  long,  straight  mountain,  that  formed  the  right 
bank  of  the  Fusagasuga,  had  assumed  a  singular  aspect.  It  was 
naked  of  vegetation,  and  black,  and  almost  as  regular  as  the  roof 
of  a  house ;  but  it  was  divided  into  large  irregular  patches  by 
means  of  vivid  green  of  uniform  width,  and  apparently  consist- 
ing of  grass  without  bushes.  The  rock  was  of  a  basaltic  color, 
but  I  believe  it  is  old  red  sandstone,  judging  at  a  distance. 

I  turned.  My  view  was  limited  by  other  mountain  spurs, 
but  I  could  see  that  the  mountain  opposite  here  receded  from 
the  river,  leaving  space  for  a  plain  of  great  height  and  width,  as 
green  and  apparently  as  perfect  as  any  lawn.  Beyond,  all  was 
shut  in  with  hills,  as  was  also  all  this  side  the  river,  except  a 
little  valley  of  palms  and  tree-ferns. 

In  a  corner  of  this  valley  was  hidden  a  cottage  at  which  I  was 
to  breakfast.  Here  I  found  two  or  three  disgusting  women; 
one  making  cigars  with  one  hand,  and  holding  a  babe  to  the 
breast  with  the  other.  On  the  earth  floor  were  two  little  girls 
about  beginning  to  walk ;  one  covered  with  dirt,  the  other  with 
dirt  and  rags.  Fortunately,  I  needed  nothing  from  the  house, 
and,  after  finishing  my  fowl  with  the  aid  of  the  two  little  mon- 
keys, I  went  on  my  way. 

A  few  ups  and  downs,  and  turns,  opened  to  my  view  the  broad, 
torrid  valley  of  theMagdalena,  varied  by  mountains,  woods,  mead- 
ows, and  streams.  I  can  not  attempt  to  describe  it.  I  can  only 
say  it  was  "wondrous  fair."  To  this  lower  level  we  were  now 
to  descend  just  as  the  day  was  waxing  warm.  Now  came  the 
test.  The  tnula  that  bore  my  trunks  acted  as  if  she  was  pos- 
sessed. All  along  she  had  been  in  the  practice  of  running  on 
ahead,  and  when  she  had  gained  enough  she  would  lie  down, 
putting  the  peon  to  the  trouble  of  adjusting  her  carga  each  time. 
Now  she  raced  on,  and  we  had  enough  to  do  to  keep  up  with 


318  NEW  GRANADA. 

her.  The  streams  we  passed  were  numerous,  several  compelling 
me  to  denude  my  feet  to  wade  across.  At  every  stream  I  lost 
ground.  The  heat  was  increasing.  At  length  the  beast  slack- 
ened her  pace,  and  I  entered  Melgar  ahead  of  her. 

Melgar  is  one  of  those  market  towns  whose  existence  is  a  nut 
for  politico-economists.  Imagine,  in  the  middle  of  an  unculti- 
vated plain,  a  large  town  of  mud  and  thatch,  with  a  church, 
chapel,  and  public  square,  without  a  trace  of  industry.  I  begin 
to  believe  the  story  of  two  'cute  chaps,  who,  shut  up  in  a  room 
together,  swapped  jackets  back  and*  forth  till  each  had  gained 
five  dollars.  I  was  desirous  that  Melgar  should  gain  something 
by  me,  but  I  sought  meat,  eggs,  and  fruit  in  vain.  I  ate  here 
an  orange,  but  it  was  so  poor  I  ate  it  only  out  of  politeness. 

My  mule  recovered  her  spirits  in  the  pause  at  Melgar.  She 
trotted  on  till  she  came  to  a  large  stream,  running,  as  all  the  oth- 
ers run,  toward  the  river  on  my  right.  She  crossed  the  stream, 
and  quietly  lay  down  on  her  left  side,  just  in  the  edge  of  the 
water.  My  Endlicher,  a  twenty-dollar  book,  and  the  dried  plants 
of  the  last  month,  were  the  chief  sufferers.  It  was  a  long  time 
before  we  came  to  a  suitable  place  to  stop,  but  we  arrived  at  4 
P.M.  at  a  very  clean  house,  where  I  removed  the  encerado  from 
the  trunk,  and  exposed  the  wet  contents  to  the  setting  sun. 

I  had  bought  eight  eggs  for  half  a  dime  before  reaching  this 
house.  I  sent  a  quarter  dime  to  another  place,  and  the  messen- 
ger returned  with  a  totuma  of  milk,  and  the  promise  of  a  like 
quantity  in  the  morning.  I  had  sugar  with  me,  and,  much  to 
the  interest  of  the  family,  I  made  a  custard  in  my  smaller  ket- 
tle, which  I  put  in  the  next  larger,  filled  with  water.  A  bath  in 
the  stream,  in  which  my  trunks  had  been  dipped  above,  consum- 
ed the  rest  of  the  day.  I  found  my  custard  creditable  to  a  chem- 
ist, and  my  hammock  all  that  a  hammock  should  be. 

The  master  of  this  family  has  several  peons  in  his  employ, 
but  himself  goes  without  clothing  from  his  hips  upward.  I  re- 
marked to  him  that  he  certainly  bore  one  mark  of  a  Christian, 
a  broad  cross  of  thick  black  hair  along  the  mesian  line  and  dia- 
phragm. 

We  started  late  in  the  morning  on  account  of  a  violent  rain 
all  night,  which  ceased  about  7,  but  rendered  a  stream  ahead  im- 
passable. Having  made  another  custard  and  taken  my  choco- 


PLAIN  OP  MELGAE.  319 

late,  I  set  forward.  Near  the  stream  I  stopped  at  a  house, 
breakfasted  on  my  custard,  opened  my  trunks  to  dry  their  con- 
tents. The  quick  eye  of  a  woman  who  stopped  there  discover- 
ed an  unusual  stock  of  desirables,  and  she  came  to  me  asking  a 
present  to  remember  me  by.  She  was  one  of  the  last  Granadi- 
nas  that  I  would  care  to  remember,  or  be  remembered  by,  but  I 
judged  it  best  to  comply,  so  I  gave  her  a  shell  of  an  abundant 
species,  which  had  lost  its  operculum,  telling  her  that  at  home 
such  a  shell  would  be  treasured  up  with  much  care.  This  is 
the  first  application  for  a  present  I  have  received. 

The  water  fell  slowly,  and  I  gave  four  men  three  dimes  to 
carry  my  cargas  across.  The  current  was  so  violent  that  I  could 
not  stand  in  it,  but  they  carried  every  thing  across  securely,  and 
at  dark  I  reached  the  banks  of  the  Magdalena. 

The  road  of  this  afternoon  was  diversified  by  winding  round 
the  bases  of  mountains.  Two  plants  here  interested  me.  One 
was  of  the  Cinchonate  Order,  and  had  a  sprig  of  small  incon- 
spicuous flowers,  except  that  the  lower  flowers  of  the  raceme  had 
each  one  lobe  of  the  calyx  enormously  elongated,  and  colored 
bright  crimson.  I  suppose  it  to  be  Calycophyllum  coccineum. 
I  have  seen  it  four  times  in  all,  but  never  have  been  able  to  save 
decent  specimens  of  it.  Those  that  I  have  I  begged  from  the 
ornaments  of  a  torch  carried  one  night  in  honor  of  Santa  Bar- 
bara. The  other  was  a  Dalechambia,  of  the  Euphorbiate  Order, 
and  had  what  appeared  a  flower  of  two  red  rose  leaves.  Within 
was  a  large  gland,  with  some  staminate  flowers  on  one  side  of  it, 
and  pistillate  flowers  on  the  other. 

I  passed  a  bank  where  a  cow  was  eating  clay,  apparently  pure 
and  destitute  of  any  saline  taste.  The  bank  had  been  eaten 
quite  away. 

I  passed  the  village  of  Fusagasuga  Ferry,  so  called  because 
the  road  down  the  Magdalena  there  crosses  the  Suma  Paz.  I 
kept  on  my  course  without  stopping,  Roque  being  half  an  hour 
behind.  I  had  got  twenty  rods  from  the  last  house,  when  a 
body  of  men  came  running  after  me,  calling  to  me  to  stop.  I 
asked  the  reason,  but  received  no  answer  till  they  came  quite  up 
to  me,  when  a  respectable-looking  gentleman,  feeling  called  upon 
to  answer,  said  that  they  feared  that  I  would  lose  my  way.  I 
replied  that  I  had  no  fears  on  that  head,  and  offered  to  go  on, 


320 


NEW   GRANADA. 


when  they  opened  on  me  a  volley  of  questions,  which  would 
have  convinced  me,  had  I  doubted,  that  curiosity  is  the  peculi- 
arity of  no  sex  or  nation.  In  short,  the  object  of  this  expedi- 
tion was  to  solve  a  problem  that  perhaps  had  never  occurred  to 
any  member  of  it  before — where  a  stranger  on  foot  could  have 
come  from  or  be  going  to  all  alone.  I  gratified  them  in  this,  to- 
gether with  my  business,  aims,  and  prospects. 

I  stopped  for  the  night  at  a  nice-looking  house,  where  the 
peon  had  to  destroy  $10  worth  of  cactus  (Dunlap's  estimation) 
to  make  the  gateway  wide  enough  for  my  cargas.  The  nice- 
looking  house  was  occupied  by  two  unmarried  ladies  and  their 

babies.  A  hideous  goi- 
tred  servant  had  hers 
(I  think  its  father  must 
have  been  blind,  but 
you  may  judge  for  your- 
self) slung  in  a  ham- 
mock in  the  room  where 
I  slept,  and  she  herself 
slept  on  the  floor. 

Here  I  found  that 
my  bread,  sugar,  and 
chocolate  had  been  im- 
mersed in  the  stream 
we  passed.  I  dined 
on  bread  and  chocolate 
only,  with  a  little  sausage.  My  sleep  was  a  little  disturbed  by 
two  of  the  babies,  which  cried  in  turns,  and,  after  an  early  choc- 
olate, we  repaired  to  the  bank  of  the  Magdalena. 

The  river  here  is  about  as  broad  as  the  Hudson  at  Albany, 
and  much  more  rapid.  The  canoe  could  not  take  all  my  bag- 
gage at  once,  and  the  delay  was  so  great  that  it  was  about  ten 
when  we  left  the  ferry.  After  this  delay  I  was  not  in  a  humor 
to  be  fooled  with.  We  were  to  travel  in  good  earnest,  and,  if 
the  sun  scorched  or  the  rain  poured,  so  much  the  worse. 

And  the  sun  did  scorch.  We  were  traveling  south  up  the 
river,  having  it  on  our  left,  and  before  us  a  limitless  prairie,  in- 
tersected by  a  few  small  streams  of  milk- warm  water.  The  road 
down  to  one  of  these  was  so  narrow  that  the  mula  contrived  to 


GIRL  WITH   GOITRE. 


PLAIN  OF  ESPINAL.  321 

fasten  her  two  trunks  in  the  banks,  so  that  to  advance  or  recede 
was  impossible.  I  turned  back,  and  found  that  Roque  had  re- 
leased her,  leaving  the  load  in  the  form  of  a  rustic  arch  across 
the  road.  While  reloading,  the  macho  went  on  and  hid  himself. 
We  were  making  up  lost  time,  and  the  sun  was  doing  its  best 
to  keep  us  warm,  when  we  entered  Espinal  at  about  1  or  2  P.M. 
This  is  one  of  the  prettiest  and  neatest  towns  I  have  seen  in 
New  Granada,  and  its  shops  were  of  a  superior  order.  But  how 
came  it  posted  here,  upon  the  naked,  parched,  and  shadeless 
plain  ? 

Making  no  delay  in  Espinal,  we  went  on  our  burning  way. 
It  was  the  14th  of  January,  and  if  all  my  friends  managed  to 
keep  as  warm  as  I  that  day,  great  must  be  the  virtues  of  an- 
thracite. In  fact,  I  began  to  fear  that  I  should  kill  or  cripple  my 
beasts  ;  and  at  length,  meeting  cargas  that  had  left  Ibague  that 
morning,  I  judged  the  surest  way  of  reaching  my  journey's  end 
the  next  (Saturday)  night  was  to  relent  a  little. 

The  heat  of  this  day  reminds  me  to  speak  of  my  dress.  I 
doubt  if  I  could  have  performed  the  journey  with  any  boots  or 
shoes  to  be  found  in  New  York.  The  alpargata,  which  I  have 
already  described,  can  not  be  surpassed  in  such  service.  My 
body  was  just  covered  with  a  single  thickness  of  blue  twilled 
cotton — the  form  of  the  dress  almost  exactly  resembling  the  ju- 
venile dress  in  which  I  gloried  in  my  second  year.  To  this 
was  added  nothing  more  than  a  belt  and  my  hat. 

A  traveler  makes  a  funny  story  out  of  a  robbery  he  suffered  in 
the  plains  of  Mexico.  An  attempt  to  rob  me  would  have  been  a 
better  joke,  for  they  left  him  with  more  than  they  could  have 
found  on  me,  especially  as  it  devolved  on  Roque  to  carry  my 
money  and  settle  my  bills.  Except  my  hat,  compass,  knife,  belt, 
and  spectacles,  the  value  of  what  I  wore,  when  new,  was  $1  20. 

I  had  begun  my  breakfast  for  to-day  last  night  in  good  sea- 
son. I  had  bought  some  eggs  at  noon  when  waiting  for  the 
water  to  fall,  and  at  night  beat  them  up  with  sugar.  I  found 
milk  at  the  ferryman's  after  crossing  this  morning  (a  remarkable 
occurrence),  and  had  just  cooked  my  custard,  when  the  peon 
was  ready  to  start.  I  waited  for  the  first  good  spot  after  I  left 
Melgar,  and  breakfasted  at  4  P.M.  A  large  custard  is  not  very 
nice  after  carrying  all  day  tied  on  a  mule's  back  under  a  verti- 

X 


322  NEW  GRANADA. 

cal  sun,  but  my  appetite  was  good,  and  it  passed  for  a  late  break- 
fast, but  better  than  none.  Late  as  it  was,  it  was  twenty-eight 
hours  before  dinner. 

After  breakfast  I  saw  the  first  living  snake  I  have  met  in  this 
country,  and  as  it  is  a  good  sign  to  kill  the  first  snake  seen  ev- 
ery year,  I  did  so.  Before  singing  any  pjeans  over  my  victory, 
I  may  as  well  give  the  dimensions  of  my  foe.  It  was  about  six 
inches  long,  and  a  little  thicker  than  a  knitting-needle;  I  put 
it  into  my  spirit-lamp  to  preserve  it. 

At  dark  I  arrived  at  the  River  Coello.  Here  I  found  a  tall 
man,  naked  except  a  handkerchief  about  his  loins,  standing  on  a 
stone  in  front  of  a  house,  talking  with  the  proprietress.  He  of- 
fered to  take  my  cargas  across  the  stream  on  his  shoulders.  He 
appeared  as  nearly  drunk  as  I  ever  saw  a  Granadino,  and  with- 
out answering  him  I  went  down  to  the  river.  He  followed  me, 
and  as  I  saw  there  a  good  canoe,  I  let  him  pass.  When  the 
peon  came  up  he  found  that  there  was  no  authorized  ferryman. 
I  explained  to  him  that  this  did  not  forbid  the  owner  of  the  boat 
passing  us  gratis,  or,  if  no  other  way  occurred,  I  would  seize  on 
the  boat  and  ferry  myself.  But  it  was  now  night,  and  there 
was  no  denying  that  he  and  his  mules  were  terribly  tired,  so  we 
returned  to  the  house. 

Here  I  found  a  deaf  and  dumb  girl,  the  first  of  this  class  I 
have  met.  I  have  before  noticed  the  scarcity  of  lunatics ;  both 
of  these  classes  will  probably  increase,  the  latter  certainly,  with 
increased  cultivation  of  intellect.  They  were  much  surprised 
to  hear  of  the  education  of  the  deaf  and  dumb. 

Here  I  saw  a  sick  babe,  and  I  thought  that  those  who  are 
fond  of  a  fling  against  the  medical  profession  might  read  a  les- 
son from  the  case.  Among  the  lower  people  it  appears  as  if  the 
dangerous  sickness  of  a  child  causes  little  anxiety,  and  its  loss 
little  grief;  its  burial  is  certainly  a  scene  of  rejoicing.  It  goes 
merrily  to  the  grave  with  rites  entirely  peculiar,  and  bearing  the 
name  of  a  little  angel. 

I  desired  nothing  after  my  four  o'clock  breakfast  but  choco- 
late and  bread.  Having  repeated  the  same  in  the  morning, 
as  I  could  buy  nothing  here,  I  set  forward  with  no  breakfast  in 
prospect  till  I  reached  Ibague.  A  young  man  at  the  house,  to 
save  me  from  the  crime  of  seizing  on  the  boat,  offered  to  ferry 
across  my  cargas  for  triple  the  price  the  law  would  alloAV  a  fer- 


PLAIN  OF  IBAGUE.  323 

ryman,  and  I  permitted  the  peon  to  accede.  I  crossed  in  the 
boat,  while  Roque  undertook  to  pass  the  horses  below.  He 
found  it  too  deep,  and  I  had  to  swim  down  and  bring  them 
across,  with  him  clinging  to  the  tail  of  the  hindermost.  He 
could  not  swim.  So,  after  paying  a  triple  ferriage  across  the 
river,  I  had  to  swim  it  twice. 

The  Plain  of  Espinal  is  bounded  on  the  west  by  steep  mount- 
ains of  horizontal  sandstone,  with  the  Coello  at  their  base.  As 
we  entered  an  indentation  of  the  plain,  it  became  stony  and  a 
little  elevated.  This  was  just  as  the  sun  lost  its  power  last 
night.  As  it  sunk  behind  the  mountains,  we  descended  to  the 
level  of  the  river,  and  ascended  its  right  bank  in  a  romantic 
glen.  After  crossing  the  river  this  morning,  we  rose  to  a  nar- 
row plain  in  the  mountains  where  lies  the  scattered  pueblo  of  Co- 
ello. Again  I  descended,  reascended,  enormously,  as  it  appears, 
though  to  me  it  seemed  much  less  than  it  really  must  have  been. 

Here  I  found  a  vast  plain  in  the  mountains,  stony,  in  some 
places  almost  paved,  dry,  and  scant  in  grass.  It  resembles 
that  of  Fusagasuga,  but  is  more  level,  and  is  surrounded  by 
mountains  of  entirely  different  geological  character.  It  is 
bounded  on  the  south  by  the  Coello,  which  thus  skirts  two  im- 
mense prairies,  but  shows  itself  to  the  traveler  only  in  a  broken 
valley  between  the  two. 

I  stopped  at  a  venta,  where  I  could  get  neither  milk,  bread, 
meat,  nor  fruits.  Eggs  and  salt  I  refused,  and  pressed  on. 
Here  my  peon  begged  permission  to  fall  behind  an  hour  or  so  and 
rest  his  beasts.  I  consented,  added  a  thin  coat  to  my  scanty 
clothing,  entered  an  arm  of  the  plain  between  two  stoneless 
mountains,  and  discovered  Ibague  at  4  P.M.,  cooped  up  in  a  lit- 
tle elevated  plain  between  two  spurs  of  the  central  Cordillera  of 
the  Andes.  The  town  lies  between  the  right  bank  of  the  Chia- 
pala  and  the  left  bank  of  the  Combeima,  which  here  unites  with 
the  Coello.  The  Coello  is  here  called  the  San  Juan,  and  still 
above  the  Toche. 

The  expenses  of  this  trip  are  rather  a  curiosity : 

Two  beasts  and  peon $12  00        Eggs $0  10 

Bread 50        Milk 5 

Chocolate 11        Guarapo 11 

Fowl 20  Lodging  and  incidentals....         00 

Ferriages  of  self  and  cargas         85  Total  $13  97 

Candles 5 


324  NEW  GRANADA. 

Excluding  what  would  come  under  the  term  of  fare  in  the  Unit- 
ed States,  all  that  I  could  conveniently  spend  in  four  days  was 
$1  12,  and  none  of  this  was  at  places  where  I  spent  the  nights. 
The  peon  paid  the  bill  of  the  mules  at  the  stopping-places,  and 
provided  for  himself  according  to  his  fancy.  He  is  bound  to 
pay  his  own  ferriage ;  and  if  the  beasts  are  aided  by  the  boats 
in  swimming,  he  pays  also  for  that,  but  the  owner  of  the  car- 
gas  pays  the  ferriage  of  them. 

Although  in  these  five  days  I  saw  no  floor  but  earth,  and  but 
few  tables  (those  not  spread,  except  with  my  coarse  utensils), 
no  beds  but  dried  hides,  neither  teacup,  tumbler,  metal  spoon, 
looking-glass,  newspaper,  book,  or  pamphlet,  it  was  one  of  the 
most  delightful  trips  I  have  ever  taken.  When  I  found  before 
me  an  ascent,  I  rejoiced.  It  promised  me  prospect  and  coolness. 
When  I  came  to  a  descent,  I  rejoiced.  It  led  to  new  trees  and 
a  purling  brook.  When  I  came  to  a  plain,  I  wished  I  had  a 
horse,  to  fly  more  quickly  over  it,  but  it  would  only  have  been 
to  wait  the  longer  for  the  mules.  Had  I  been  taken  lame  or 
sick,  a  horse  could  easily  have  been  procured  at  any  stage  of  the 
journey.  And  now  I  have  proved  my  power  of  walking  in  the 
tropics,  though  I  had  been  repeatedly  assured  I  should  find  it 
impossible  to  walk. 

I  arrived  in  Ibague  on  the  afternoon  of  Saturday.  Unluck- 
ily for  the  gentleman  to  whom  I  had  a  letter,  I  caught  him  in 
town,  where  he  keeps  in  his  house  a  dependant,  a  servant,  and 
his  little  son,  who  attends  school.  He  resides,  with  the  rest  of 
his  family,  in  the  country.  Had  his  family  been  living  in  town, 
perhaps  he  would  have  been  glad  of  company ;  had  he  been  on 
his  plantation,  he  would  have  escaped  entirely.  He  could  have 
kept  me  in  his  house,  but  it  would  have  been  only  so  much 
trouble  and  expense  to  be  passed  to  the  account  of  disinterested 
benevolence.  Room  in  his  house  would  have  cost  him  nothing, 
had  I  sought  my  meals  elsewhere,  but  that  was  not  to  be  thought 
of;  so  he  sent  his  son  in  different  directions  with  little  success. 
Ibague  has  experienced  two  or  three  severe  fires  in  as  many 
years,  and  scarce  a  house  has  been  rebuilt.  In  the  midst  of  the 
search,  an  acquaintance  passed  the  window.  "  Man,"  he  called 
out,  "do  you  know  of  a  vacant  house?"  "No,"  he  replied. 
"Will  you  have  the  goodness  to  look  for  one  for  my  friend?" 


POSADA  AT  IBAGUE.  325 

"Why  not,  man?"  was  his  cheerful  reply.  By  the  time  the 
weary  beasts  arrived,  the  task  was  accomplished,  the  eating-place 
found,  and  all  I  had  to  do  was  to  direct  the  unloading  of  my 
mules,  and  go  to  dinner  about  8  P.M. 

I  fancied  myself  master  of  a  large,  deserted  house.  In  a  suite 
of  three  small  rooms  I  found  a  bedstead  of  the  usual  construc- 
tion— an  ox-hide  stretched  like  a  drum-head  on  a  square  frame. 
This  was  all  the  furniture  of  the  three  rooms.  The  middle  one 
had  a  door,  the  others  windows,  differing  from  doors  only  in 
having  a  grating  to  prevent  entrance  when  open.  Here  I  put 
my  baggage,  and  slung  my  hammock  in  the  parlor.  I  retired, 
sole  inhabitant  as  I  supposed,  leaving  the  doors  open  for  Roque. 
In  the  night  I  heard  a  tramping  and  clanking  like  that  of  a  Ger- 
man ghost  dragging  his  chain.  It  was  not  a  ghost,  but  a  man 
who  arrived  from  the  country,  and  was  making  his  way,  jing- 
ling his  spurs  at  every  step,  to  an  adjoining  apartment. 

Daylight  showed  that  some  rooms  were  used  as  a  carpenter's 
shop,  and  others  by  the  proprietress  (who  kept  a  grocery)  for  pre- 
paring chocolate,  baking  bread,  etc.  Two  or  three  fat  hogs  pass- 
ed from  the  front  door  to  the  back  yard  when  it  pleased  their 
fancy ;  the  midnight  comer's  horse  had  the  zaguan  for  his  sta- 
ble, with  similar  liberty  of  ingress  and  egress.  The  very  hens 
flew  out  of  the  parlor  windows  when  any  thing  in  t'he  plaza  in- 
vited them.  All  was  liberty,  except  for  a  fighting-cock  who  was 
tied  to  a  stone  in  the  patio. 

Where  I  ate,  several  others  also  ate  their  solitary  and  some- 
times scanty  meal.  They  were  young  gentlemen,  employed  in 
offices  in  town.  Of  these  chaotic  meals  I  desire  to  retain  no  re- 
membrance farther  than  that  they  cost  me  exactly  4  dimes  per 
day.  Latterly  there  were  added  to  our  number  two  others,  des- 
tined to  be  my  fellow-travelers  all  next  week. 

Sunday  is  market-day  in  Ibague ;  but  the  market  is  scantier 
than  that  of  Fusagasuga,  a  town  of  half  the  size.  Besides  the 
market,  the  other  institutions  of  the  Sabbath  are  two  masses,  a 
cock-pit,  and  billiard-saloon. 

The  limits  of  authority  are  very  vague  here,  but  the  priest 
seems  to  have  no  protection  from  the  lowest.  The  priest  of 
Ibague  preached  a  sermon  on  the  Sabbath  that  the  governor  did 
not  like.  He  wrote  him  a  letter  about  it.  About  the  1st  of 


326  NEW  GRANADA. 

January,  1852,  the  priest  of  Ambalema  received  eight  dimes  of 
a  young  woman  whose  child  he  baptized ;  the  jefe  politico  wrote 
to  him  to  return  the  money.  If  a  priest  wishes  to  absent  him- 
self for  four  days,  the  governor  ordains  that  he  shall  apply  for 
leave  to  the  alcalde  of  his  parish.  Thus  the  poor  priest  has 
three  civil  masters  (four  including  the  President),  with  an  eccle- 
siastical head  besides.  The  worst  of  it  is,  he  receives  contra- 
dictory orders,  and  is  punished  for  disobedience  of  either. 

Two  interesting  documents  were  read  by  the  priest  in  the 
church  at  the  Sabbath  mass,  both  of  which  he  kindly  gave  me. 
One  was  the  Allocutio  of  Pius  IX.  on  the  affairs  of  New  Gran- 
ada, censuring  the  action  of  the  government  under  Mosquera  as 
well  as  Lopez,  and  pronouncing  certain  unchristian  laws  null 
and  void.  The  other  was  a  circular  enjoining  faithfulness  to  re- 
ligious duties  during  the  approaching  Lent.  This  last  interest- 
ed me  chiefly  for  the  signature,  of  which  the  annexed  is  a  fac- 
simile : 

Domingo  Antonio  Riano.. 


This  flourish  is  called  a  rubrica,  and  is  the  essential  part  of 
the  signature.  In  a  document  of  many  leaves,  every  one  ought 
to  bear  the  rubrica,  but  the  last  only  requires  the  name  and  sur- 
name, and  these  may  be,  as  in  this  instance,  printed.  In  Bulls 
for  eating  meat,  I  have  seen  both  name  and  rubrica  applied  by 
a  stamp.  The  rubrica  must  have  had  its  origin  hi  the  mark  af- 
fixed by  those  who  could  not  write  their  name,  but  it  is  now  an 
additional  security  against  forgery.  Few  are  so  complicated  as 
the  specimen  above,  but  some  much  more  so.  They  are  placed 
under  the  name  as  well  as  after  it,  and  no  Granadino  is  satisfied 
with  a  plain  signature  and  nothing  more. 

The  public  schools  of  Ibague  are  the  Provincial  College,  a 
boys'  school,  and  a  girls'  school.  I  visited  the  latter  on  the 
third  day  of  its  session.  It  was  the  most  pleasant  sight  I  have 
seen  in  New  Granada.  The  school  had  been  burned  out.  It 
was  now  in  a  clean,  new  house.  The  girls  were  all  seated  on 
the  floor  in  clean  dresses,  and  as  still  and  orderly  as  could  be 
desired.  Sewing  and  praying  are  two  important  branches  in 


SCHOOLS  OF  IBAGU&  327 

the  female  schools  here.  Fortunately,  they  were  engaged  in  the 
former.  Lately,  theology  has  received  a  severe  check  in  this 
province.  The  gobernacion  has  banished  from  all  the  schools 
the  catechism  of  Father  Astete,  the  longest,  dullest,  and  most 
orthodox  of  all  the  school  catechisms.  There  are  not  less  than 
three  others  in  the  schools,  but  these  are  forbidden  every  day 
but  Saturday.  Some  in  these  schools  learn  to  pray,  but  not  to 
read. 

The  girls  in  this  school  were  all  young — none,  perhaps,  as  old 
as  twelve.  All  were  learning  to  read,  but  scarcely  any  two  had 
the  same  book.  They  were  as  diverse  in  their  topics  as  would 
be  Baxter's " Saint's  Rest,"  Gunn's  "Domestic  Medicine,"  "Re- 
port on  the  Tariff,"  Doddridge's  "  Rise  and  Progress,"  and  Mor- 
gan's "  Masonry  Revealed."  In  one  thing  they  all  agreed : 
they  were  uninteresting  to  children,  with  perhaps  one  exception, 
a  book  written  for  the  amusement  of  adults.  A  scandalous  at- 
tack on  the  banished  archbishop  has  been  circulated  by  the  gov- 
ernment, and,  it  is  said,  used  in  schools  as  a  reading-book.  I 
do  not  doubt  it,  nor  that  the  still  more  impudent  attack  on  the 
government  by  the  Pope  will  be  found  in  the  same  schools. 
Such  of  the  Spanish  narratives  of  the  Tract  Society  as  do  not 
attack  the  religion  of  this  country  would  do  good  service.  One 
of  them,  "Theophilus  and  Sophia,"  was  read  with  much  inter- 
est in  a  school  in  Bogota.  There  is  here  a  great  want  of  chil- 
dren's books,  and  an  absolute  destitution  of  school  reading-books. 

Nor  have  they  any  good  geography.  In  the  colegio  here  it  is 
not  permitted  to  study  geography  till  after  algebra  and  geome- 
try. I  have  a  good  test  question :  Where  is  Patagonia  ?  Those 
who  know  are  not  surprised  at  my  ignorance,  as  it  is  in  South 
America,  of  which  they  suppose  me  profoundly  ignorant.  But 
in  general  I  get,  even  from  educated  men,  the  conjecture  that  it 
is  somewhere  in  Europe.  One  of  the  most  intelligent  of  my 
acquaintances  was  talking  to  me  of  our  Fishery  Question,  and 
I  was  unable  to  convince  him  that  a  British  squadron  was  not 
stationed  in  Greenland.  At  this  moment  he  thinks  me  badly 
posted  up  in  this  matter. 

Their  arithmetics  are  a  phenomenon  for  the  psychologist  to 
explain.  I  should  not  dare  to  write  a  critique  on  one  of  them, 
for  it  could  not  be  regarded  otherwise  than  as  an  exaggeration 


328  NEW   GRANADA. 

or  a  caricature.  Their  slates  were  all  destroyed  in  the  fire,  and 
there  are  no  others  for  sale  nearer  than  Bogota. 

The  teacher  was  a  pleasant-looking  woman,  with  two  children, 
a  club-footed  little  boy  of  four  or  five,  and  a  saucy  girl  of  two. 
She  has  a  husband,  too  (not  a  matter  of  course),  Secretary  of 
the  Jefe  Politico,  I  think  with  a  salary  of  $192. 

I  attended  an  examination  of  the  Colegio  Provincial,  but  my 
efforts  to  get  an  idea  of  the  ordinary  routine  were  in  vain.  One 
feature  I  think  objectionable :  the  province  paid  the  board  of 
some  of  the  pupils,  while  others,  too  poor  to  pay  tuition,  were  re- 
fused admission.  The  school  edifices  were  much  more  spacious 
than  necessary,  but  not  in  good  order. 

The  duties  of  curate  here  are  discharged  by  a  vicar,  with  a 
nominal  salary  of  $480,  and  an  assistant,  at  $240.  The  vicar 
I  found  a  pleasant  man,  anxious  to  render  himself  agreeable.  I 
called  on  him  on  Sabbath  afternoon  to  return  a  book  that  he 
had  lent  me.  I  found  him  dining  al  fresco.  I  had  dined,  but 
ate  a  piece  of  an  ear  of  roasted  maize  and  some  sweetmeats.  He 
then  invited  me  to  go  with  him  to  the  cock-fight.  I  did  not 
consent,  but  went  out  with  him.  We  were  informed  that  the 
fight  was  over,  and  I  went  in  with  him.  He  was  received  as  a 
boon  companion,  and  immediately  set  himself  to  work  to  get  up 
another  fight  for  my  gratification.  This  I  thought  was  carry- 
ing politeness  a  little  too  far,  but  in  vain  were  my  protestations. 
I  began  to  tremble  for  the  result,  for  I  would  rather  suffer  any 
thing  than  be  the  cause  of  so  much  cruelty  to  two  noble  birds 
like  one  that  I  saw  dead  at  my  feet.  But  the  reverend  father's 
exhortations  did  not  appear  to  have  as  much  effect  as  when  in  the 
pulpit  in  the  morning,  and,  to  my  great  relief,  I  escaped  without 
witnessing  a  cock-fight. 

I  was  another  time  at  the  vicar's  house,  when  he  was  called 
upon  to  administer  the  sacraments  to  a  dying  person.  I  begged 
permission  to  be  present.  "With  pleasure,"  said  he,  "if  you 
will  only  have  the  goodness,  as  a  favor  to  me,  to  walk  uncover- 
ed when  I  am  carrying  the  Holiest."  "  Oh,  as  to  that,"  I  re- 
plied, throwing  my  hat  in  a  chair,  "do  not  be  uneasy ;  the  night  is 
warm.  I  will  leave  my  hat  here."  But  neither  proving  too  much 
nor  conceding  too  much  satisfies  ;  so  I  had  to  take  my  hat,  and 
enter  a  tienda  till  the  Great  Umbrella  was  at  a  sufficient  distance. 


EXTREME  UNCTION.  329 

Then,  Peter-like,  I  followed  afar  off,  till  I  came  to  a  crowd  kneel- 
ing before  a  small  house.  As  I  entered  I  took  off  my  hat,  of 
course.  The  small  room  had  been  temporarily  divided  by  a  cur- 
tain. Behind  it  was  a  neat  little  chapel,  with  a  bed  in  it.  This 
conversion  of  half  a  dingy  cabin  into  a  beautiful  niche  of  a  chap- 
el, with  crucifixes,  saints,  candles,  and  flowers,  had  obviously 
been  the  result  of  attentions  and  loans  from  the  neighbors.  Here 
the  priest  was  hard  at  his  work.  The  confession  and  absolu- 
tion were  all  over,  and  he  was  praying  like  a  locomotive.  You 
can  easily  tell  when  a  priest  is  using  Latin,  which  occurs  only 
once  or  twice  a  year.  He  reads  only  about  eighty  words  to  the 
minute.  But  the  moment  he  strikes  into  a  much-used  place,  he 
gallops  off  at  the  rate  of  200,  or  even  more.  After  reeling  off 
thus  what  would  cost  me  an  hour  to  utter,  he  opened  a  small  me- 
tallic snuff-box,  broke  off  a  piece  of  a  wafer,  and  put  it  into  the 
patient's  mouth.  More  rapid  Latin.  Then  he  took  a  bottle  of 
oil ;  into  this  he  dipped  a  silver  wire,  and,  taking  into  his  hand 
a  piece  of  cotton,  he  applied  the  oil  with  one  hand,  and  wiped  it 
off  with  the  other.  He  applied  it  to  the  ears,  eyes,  nose,  mouth, 
thumbs,  and  toes.  All  this  was  done  in  the  most  expeditious 
manner,  and  with  a  nonchalance  that  implied  that  the  poor  fellow 
was  used  to  dying.  The  moment  that  the  dying  man  had  re- 
ceived the  consolations  of  religion,  the  good  priest  and  his  sacris- 
tan gathered  up  their  traps  and  were  off.  That  night  the  car- 
penter was  busy  making 
a  queer-shaped  box.  It 
was  a  coffin  for  the  dying, 
made,  one  would  fancy, 
from  a  misunderstood  de- 
scription of  those  used  at 
ACOFFIN-  the  North.  One  of  those 

who  were  keeping  the  carpenter  in  good  company  and  good  spirits 
was  the  father  of  the  dying.  The  cemetery  of  Ibague  was  beau- 
tiful 50  years  ago,  but  is  now  in  disgusting  disorder.  It  is  fine- 
ly situated  on  a  point  of  the  plain  that  overlooks  the  Combeima, 
but  is  overgrown  with  weeds  and  bushes,  and  the  tombs  are  neg- 
lected and  dilapidated.  Here  they  laid  that  strange-shaped  coffin 
next  day,  for  the  young  man  was  dead.  The  priest  did  not  come. 
Ibague  is  a  peon  town.  Its  foreign  revenue  has  been  chiefly 


330  NEW   GRANADA. 

from  cargueros,  who  carried  men  across  the  Quindio  Mountains, 
over  a  road  too  bad  for  mules.  The  road  is  now  improved,  so 
that,  in  the  dry  season,  mules  can  pass  quite  comfortably ;  but 
there  is  now  increased  travel,  and  cargueros,  servants,  mail-car- 
riers (on  foot),  and  chasquies  are,  perhaps,  more  in  demand  than 
ever.  It  bears  the  same  relation  to  the  Quindio  that  Independ- 
ence does  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  except  that  it  is  impossible 
so  to  make  arrangements  as  to  avoid  paying  tribute  to  it. 
Ibague  is  the  fourth  town  in  the  province  in  population,  and  in 
wealth  the  fifth,  sixth,  or  seventh. 

In  Ibague  fruit  is  attainable,  and  often  cheap  enough.  I 
bought  oranges  at  the  rate  of  72  for  a  dime.  The  plain  is  long, 
and  the  scattered  cottages  on  it  present  a  beautiful  appearance, 
especially  when  the  children  are  playing  in  the  moonlight.  Water 
is  accessible ;  but  we  prefer  quoting  from  La  Imprenta  of  May, 
1852 :  "  The  water  comes  to  Ibague  from  the  sides  of  Tolima 
by  a  canal  which  passes  through  the  principal  street  that  crosses 
the  town.  At  every  square  this  canal  has  a  deep  opening,  in 
which  the  incautious  traveler,  who  does  not  understand  geogra- 
phy, might  breathe  his  last ;  but  this  is  not  the  worst :  the  wa- 
ter-carriers, and  especially  the  female  members  of  this  profession, 
descend  to  the  bottom  of  these  wells  for  water,  and,  having  per- 
formed such  ablutions  as  suit  their  fancy,  go  their  way.  How 
clean  must  the  water  be  when  it  comes  upon  the  table  ?" 

Another  interesting  chapter  of  Ibague  life  is  the  niguas.  Ni- 
gua  is  the  Spanish  for  Pulex  penetrans — the  penetrating  flea, 
jigger,  chigger,  or  chigoe.  This  is  a  microscopic  flea,  about  as 
large  as  the  head  or  one  joint  of  the  leg  of  our  well-known  bos- 
om companion.  In  like  manner,  she  chooses  her  habitation  in 
out-houses,  houses  where  the  cruel  mop  comes  not,  and  the  dire 
effects  of  water  are  unknown.  There  she  hops  about,  like  oth- 
er damsels,  seeking  a  settlement  for  life,  till,  by  good  fortune, 
she  lights  upon  a  human  leg,  or,  still  better,  foot.  She  makes 
her  way  to  a  toe,  and  then  her  fortune  is  almost  secured.  She 
penetrates  beneath  the  skin  (not  under  the  nail)  by  means  that 
the  microscope  has  not  revealed  to  me.  There,  like  the  invalid 
in  the  Mammoth  Cave,  she  enjoys  an  unchanging  and  agreeable 
temperature.  She  is  never  destined  to  know  what  hunger  is ; 
her  day  of  prosperity  is  come. 


THE  NIGUA.  331 

Prosperity  in  the  nigua,  as  in  the  human  race,  works  wonder- 
ful changes.  The  agile  damsel  of  yesterday  will  be  to-morrow 
a  shocking  obesity :  so  changed,  in  fact,  that  I  absolutely  failed 
to  convince  a  naturalist  friend  of  the  identity.  Place  around 
the  human  waist  a  thousand  yards  of  cotton  sheeting  between 
the  skin  and  the  flesh,  and  you  would  have  an  idea  of  the  dis- 
lodged nigua  that  I  have  now  beneath  my  microscope,  with  a 
white  spherical  body  as  large  as  a  small  pea,  with  head  and 
arms  of  the  original  color  and  size,  invisible  to  the  naked  eye. 
She  is  full  of  eggs,  but  it  is  past  my  conjecture  where  their  father 
is.  Every  nigua  that  enters  a  toe  becomes  a  mother  in  a  few 
days,  if  left  alone.  They  may  be,  like  the  leech,  unisexual,  or, 
as  in  the  case  of  the  soft-shelled  turtles  of  Southern  rivers,  the 
male  may  pass  for  another  species. 

The  farther  history  of  the  nigua,  happily,  I  am  unable  to  give 
from  personal  experience.  The  young  are  enterprising  settlers, 
and  soon  remove  to  a  suitable  distance  from  their  native  spot, 
and,  in  their  turn,  find  themselves  blessed  with  a  numerous 
family  of  daughters  ready  to  obey  the  great  organic  law  of 
nature. 

The  annals  of  Natural  History  tell  us  of  a  martyr  who  tried 
to  carry  a  family  of  niguas  across  the  Atlantic  in  his  foot.  They 
increased  beyond  his  calculation — beyond  his  power  of  extermi- 
nation. His  leg,  upon  his  arrival,  was  soon  added  to  the  col- 
lection of  a  surgeon  as  a  unique  specimen  of  great  value. 

Where  there  are  niguas,  a  fortiori,  there  are  fleas.  To  see 
both  in  perfection,  I  am  recommended  to  visit  the  ancient  town 
of  Popayan.  It  is  said  that  when  you  see  a  man  who  can 
catch  fleas  by  instinct,  you  may  be  sure  he  is  from  Popayan. 
If  you  see  him  put  his  hand  into  his  clothes  and  draw  forth  a 
backbiter  from  exactly  between  the  shoulder  blades,  you  may 
be  sure  he  is  a  Popayanejo.  You  draw  the  same  inference 
from  his  having  lost  a  few  toes,  or  even  toe-tails.  Popayan  is 
the  paradise  of  fleas.  Turn  an  ungreased  horse  loose  in  a  yard, 
and  in  half  an  hour  he  is  frantic.  In  vain  the  inhabitants 
bathe  two  or  three  times  a  day :  the  plague  knows  no  longer 
intermission  than  till  their  backs  are  dry.  In  going  to  bed  at 
night,  you  mount  a  table,  toss  from  you  one  article  of  dress  aft- 
ter  another,  whip  yourself  thoroughly  with  your  shirt,  throw  it 


332  NEW  GRANADA. 

in  one  direction,  and  rush  for  a  high-hung  hammock  in  the  op- 
posite. I  tell  the  tale  as  it  was  told  to  me,  for  my  desire  to  vis- 
it Popayan  has  much  abated  within  a  few  days. 

It  is  added  that  the  niguas  are,  if  possible,  a  more  serious 
evil  than  the  fleas  there,  even  destroying  life.  The  victim  dies 
covered,  or,  rather,  filled  with  one  colony  of  niguas,  from  the 
extremities  of  the  toes  to  the  extremities  of  the  fingers. 

This  is  a  long  introduction  to  a  very  short  story.  One  day 
that  week  I  had  three  niguas  taken  from  my  toes,  the  next  four, 
and  the  next  five.  As  I  needed  my  feet  for  another  use  on 
Monday,  I  was  a  little  anxious  at  first,  but  I  soon  reduced  the 
number  to  an  average  of  less  than  two  per  day. 

This  was  the  first  grand  onset  of  the  nigua,  and  some  will 
call  it  a  just  penalty  for  the  vulgarity  of  wearing  alpargatas. 
Perhaps  so,  for  I  had  but  one  nigua  in  all  the  time  that  I  wore 
boots,  while,  in  general,  I  have  since  had  one  or  two  a  week. 
The  last  general  attack  was  at  Honda,  and  it  was  equal  to  the 
first,  only  that  I  had  become  able  to  extract  them  myself. 

This  is  by  no  means  a  painful  task,  and  there  is  a  positive 
gratification  in  it.  It  is  akin  to  the  satisfaction  of  a  good  sneeze. 
The  irritation  of  the  presence  of  the  insect  occasions  an  itch- 
ing, which  is  relieved  at  once  as  soon  as  the  skillful  operation 
is  commenced.  A  pin,  needle,  or  knife-point  is  used  as  a  probe ; 
an  opening  is  made  in  the  cuticle,  and,  by  a  skillful  circular 
motion,  the  cutis  is  pressed  away  from  the  nigua  on  all  sides, 
and  then  the  whole  body  is  extracted,  without  breaking,  if  pos- 
sible. It  is  only  in  case  of  great  personal  neglect  that  limbs, 
and  even  lives,  are  lost.  Numbers  of  lives  have  been  lost  so 
in  hospitals.  The  old  doctrine  of  applying  the  remedy  to  the 
instrument  that  inflicted  the  wound  is  not  believed  in  here,  but 
it  would  be  efficacious:  the  nigua  and  the  mop  can  not  co- 
exist. 

Ibague  is  the  capital  of  the  province  of  Mariquita,  not  by  vir- 
tue of  size,  commercial  importance,  or  central  position,  but  in 
consequence  of  its  climate.  With  a  good  bed,  this  would  be  per- 
fect. Humboldt  says  of  it,  Nihil  quietius,  nihil  muscosius^ 
nihil  amcenius.  I  agree  with  him,  save  only  that  I  found  not  a 
single  moss  in  Ibague.  It  is  cooler  than  its  altitude  requires  in 
consequence  of  its  proximity  to  the  Quindio  range,  and  particu- 


GOBEENACION  OF  MAEIQUITA.  333 

larly  to  the  perpetual  snow  of  Toliraa,  to  the  cold  paramo  of 
Ruiz,  and  the  Mesa  de  Herveo. 

The  Governor  of  Mariquita  receives  $1440,  the  jefes  politicos 
of  Ambalema  and  Honda  $320 ;  the  other  three,  $240  each. 
To  this  add  secretaries  and  stationery,  and  the  expense  of  gov- 
erning 86,985  people,  exclusive  of  alcaldes  and  president,  is 
$5835,  an  item  of  government  patronage  unknown  to  our  sys- 
tem, and  derived  from  their  old  monarchical  customs.  The 
new  Constitution  attempts  a  reformation  here.  The  goberna- 
dor  and  alcaldes  are  to  be  elected  by  the  people,  and  the  office 
of  jefe  politico  is  suppressed. 

I  found  the  gobernacion  of  the  province  in  the  house  of  the 
governor,  a  young  man  of  unassuming  appearance,  who  rejoices 
in  the  name  of  Uricoechea.  He  was  unusually  busy,  making 
arrangements  for  a  body  of  troops  which  went  from  Bogota  to 
Pasto  in  October,  while  the  republic  of  Ecuador  expelled  the 
Jesuits,  and  now,  finding  no  farther  use  for  their  services,  were 
to  be  quartered  a  while  in  Ibague. 

The  governor  made  me  a  present  of  a  file  of  La  Imprenta, 
now  named  Voz  de  Tolima,  the  government  paper  of  the  prov- 
ince, and  the  only  one,  I  think,  in  the  province.  It  is  about 
the  size  of  two  folio  leaves,  and  is  published  once  a  fortnight. 
Like  all  the  papers  of  New  Granada,  Northern  readers  would 
pronounce  it  insufferably  dull,  but  to  me  it  is  full  of  interest. 
The  cost  to  the  government  this  year  is  $1626;  and  though  at 
first  I  regarded  the  measure  as  foolish,  I  am  well  satisfied  that 
it  is  a  good  one.  It  is  divided  into  official  and  non-official 
parts.  In  the  former  I  find  the  ordinances  of  the  Camara,  the 
decrees  of  the  governor,  law  cases,  and  important  decisions,  cir- 
culars to  the  jefes  politicos,  and  reports  from  them,  examina- 
tions of  schools,  advertisements  of  runaway  prisoners,  and  even 
the  public  documents  of  districts,  when  of  sufficient  interest. 
The  non-official  part  contains  every  thing  else  except  news. 

I  passed  the  Provincial  Prison  many  times  a  day,  seldom 
without  their  calling  to  me  from  the  windows,  limosna — alms. 
At  length  I  began  to  answer,  "No  tengo  limones — I  have  no 
lemons  or  limes."  At  last,  one  day,  I  put  some  limes  into  my 
pocket,  and  when  they  assailed  me  with  "  limosna,"  I  gave  them 
to  the  fellow,  saying,  "Aqui  teneis  tus  limoncitas — here  are 


.334  NEW   GRANADA. 

your  limes."  They  gave  me  up.  The  prison  was  indeed  a  tad 
one. 

I  saw  the  Camara  in  session.  It  has  a  strong  Conservador 
majority,  while  the  gobernador  is,  of  course,  a  Liberal.  What 
I  saw  here  teaches  me  not  to  translate  the  word  Conservador 
by  Conservative:  there  are  no  Conservatives  in  New  Granada 
except  fanatic  Papists.  All  the  rest  deserve  the  name  of  De- 
structives, and  might  be  classed  into  Red  Republicans  and 
Redder  Republicans ;  and  the  Redder  men  may  belong  to  either 
party,  but,  except  the  Golgotas,  the  reddest  I  know  of  are  the 
Conservadores  of  the  province  of  Mariquita. 

This  assertion  is  too  important  in  its  general  bearings  to  leave 
it  unsupported  with  facts.  I  find  in  the  Imprenta  eight  vetoes 
of  Uricoechea  in  twenty-two  days.  In  four  cases  the  bill  was 
passed  over  the  veto,  which  can  always  be  done  by  a  majority 
of  the  one  Chamber,  the  most  facile  of  all  legislation  except  by 
an  absolute  monarchy,  and  worse  even  than  that.  I  examined 
these  eight  cases,  and  in  all  I  am  confident  that  the  gobernador 
(who  seemed  too  young  for  his  oifice)  was  right,  and  the  Camara 
wrong.  One  of  them  deprived  the  jefes  politicos,  who  are  com- 
pelled to  serve  and  to  reside  at  the  Cabecera  de  Canton,  of  their 
salaries.  They  tried  to  change  the  name  of  the  province  to 
Marqueta,  derived  from  the  Marqueton  Indians,  who  once  re- 
sided there.  Mariquita  is  a  diminutive  of  Mary.  The  Supreme 
Court  decided  that  a  province  could  not  change  its  name. 

But  my  strongest  facts  relate  to  taxes.  Direct  taxes  were 
unknown.  They  voted  not  only  to  introduce  them,  but  to  rely 
wholly  on  them  at  the  first  experiment.  The  excise  on  spirits 
was  rented  out  for  some  years  to  come,  at  a  good  sum,  to  a  man 
who  had  unfortunately  introduced  some  ill-judged  and  costly  ap- 
paratus that  probably  would  not  pay.  From  the  monopoly  the 
province  suffered  no  other  inconvenience  but  that  vagabonds 
must  work  more  or  drink  less.  Well,  the  Camara  ordered  the 
contract  to  be  rescinded  without  the  contractor's  assent,  prefer- 
ring to  have  cheaper  rum  and  less  revenue.  But  the  new  sys- 
tem, which  was  invented,  not  copied  (for  this  is  the  way  with 
all  republics),  would  not  work  at  all.  Next  year  came  another 
radical  change.  All  direct  taxes  were  repealed,  and  the  whole 
revenues  needed  for  two  years,  and  for  the  indemnification  of  the 


EXPERIMENTS  IN  TAXATION.  335 

spirit  contractor,  were  to  be  raised  at  once  from  a  tax  on  the 
exportation  of  tobacco.  This  threw  all  the  burdens  of  the  prov- 
ince on  the  largest  town,  Ambalema,  the  great  tobacco  mart  of 
New  Granada.  The  utmost  they  could  hope  to  effect  by  this 
would  be  to  drive  away  the  tobacco  trade  to  other  provinces,  and 
reduce  the  population  of  Ambalema  from  9731  to  less  than  5000. 
But  new  difficulties  beset  them.  At  the  lowest  corner  of  the 
province,  on  the  Magdalena,  stands  Nare.  Under  the  new  or- 
der of  things,  no  tobacco  is  exported,  and  Nare  takes  it  all.  It 
seems  that  the  Narenos,  men,  women,  and  children,  smoke  more 
than  their  own  weight  of  tobacco  daily !  The  last  achievement 
of  the  Conservadores  that  has  reached  me  is  a  sumptuary  law 
limiting  Nare  as  to  the  amount  of  tobacco  it  should  consume, 
in  order  that  some  might  be  left  for  exportation. 

I  wish  I  had  done  with  this  matter,  but,  as  the  hope  of  all 
parties  here  seems  to  be  the  abolition  of  all  indirect  taxes,  I 
must  tell  my  reader  what  a.  progressive  tax  is.  Their  theory 
is  philosophical.  Taxes  are  to  be  paid  out  of  income,  and  he 
that  has  no  income  can  pay  no  tax.  No  more  can  he  whose  in- 
come shall  be  insufficient  for  his  wants.  Property  is  not  taxed. 
A  poll-tax  is  feudalism,  barbarism,  and  slavery.  A  man  needs 
a  certain  sum — say  $100  a  year — to  live  on.  He  that  has  less 
than  that  can  pay  no  tax.  If  his  income  be  between  $100  and 
$400,  he  can  spare  5  per  cent,  of  it  very  well ;  should  it  be 
between  $400  and  $2000,  he  can  conveniently  spare  15  per  cent, 
of  it ;  and  if  it  exceeded  $10,000  a  year,  he  could  easily  spare 
half  of  it.  This  is  progressive  taxation,  only  I  have  copied  the 
figures  of  no  one  scheme. 

This  scheme  is  designed,  you  see,  for  the  special  protection 
of  vagabonds.  The  thriftless  and  improvident  shall  be  exempt 
from  all  burdens  to  government.  Nay,  were  there  but  one  citi- 
zen in  the  province  of  the  wealth  of  an  English  duke,  they  might 
exempt  all  incomes  of  less  than  $100,000  a  year  from  taxation, 
and  make  him  alone  bear  the  expense  of  government.  Such 
was  the  scheme  recommended  by  the  editor  in  the  "  Voz  de  To- 
lima,"  the  organ  of  a  Conservador  gobernacion ;  and  I  saw  a 
similar  one  recommended  by  a  gobernador  of  Bogota — a  Liberal. 

But,  insecure  as  the  property  of  citizens  must  be  under  this 
species  of  legislation,  that  of  foreigners  is  not  attacked  in  this 


336  NEW  GRANADA. 

way.  True,  the  province  had  the  same  constitutional  right  to 
raise  its  revenue  on  the  silver  mines  instead  of  the  tobacco,  but 
they  well  knew  that  such  a  step  would  have  brought  a  British 
fleet  before  Cartagena,  and  therefore  it  was  not  to  be  thought  of. 

Another  consequence  of  this  theory  is,  that  vast  amounts  of 
property  in  the  hands  of  the  wealthy  escape  taxation.  Broad 
leagues  of  land  are  held  by  wealthy  families,  waiting  for  anoth- 
er generation  to  buy  and  settle  them.  As  they  produce  noth- 
ing, they  are  not  subject  to  taxation.  The  addition  of  a  hori- 
zontal tax  of  one  cent  an  acre  on  land,  and  a  poll-tax  of  a  dol- 
lar, would  relieve  all  the  embarrassments  of  the  treasury,  and 
the  last  would  be  a  benefit  to  the  taxed,  but  it  would  be  an  out- 
rage on  theory. 

I  speak  these  things  with  reluctance.  They  are  the  fruit  of 
speculations  drawn  almost  entirely  from  French  books  and  Gra- 
nadinos'  brains,  wholly  uncontaminated  by  any  contact  with  real- 
ities. Do  you  wonder  at  their  stupidity  in  not  copying  our  sys- 
tem of  taxation  ?  Then  why  does  not  New  York  city  enjoy  the 
benefits  of  a  postal  system  like  that  of  Berlin  or  London  ?  Why 
have  we  never  enacted  or  even  examined  the  Bankrupt-law  of 
England,  while  in  some  states  solvent  men  are  ruined  every  year 
by  grab-laws  ?  Why  have  we  still  poorer  mint-laws  than  En- 
gland adopted  in  1816?  Because  legislators  love  the  rachitic 
offspring  of  their  own  brain  too  well  to  adopt  the  fairest  and 
healthiest  progeny  of  any  other. 

Ibague  is  surrounded  with  beautiful  scenery,  whether  you 
stand  and  look  about  you  or  take  rides  and  walks.  I  do  not 
often  ride  on  my  small  excursions.  I  made  a  trip  to  Tolima, 
however,  subject  to  the  encumbrance  of  as  uncomfortable  a  mule 
for  a  botanist  as  ever  I  saw.  It  was  not,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  the 
Peak  of  Tolima  that  I  visited,  but  only  an  Indian  town  a  little 
way  up  the  Combeima.  This  volcanic  peak,  that  has  thrown 
its  pumice  around  Ibague,  is  said  to  be  only  three  leagues  from 
it,  but  the  way  is  so  bad  that  a  visit  there  costs  five  days.  I 
had  time  to  spare  for  such  a  trip,  and  it  could  not  have  been 
better  employed ;  but  the  damage  to  my  locomotive  powers 
made  me  abandon  all  ideas  of  crystallized  sulphur,  rare  plants, 
and  volcanic  action  ;  so  I  only  went  up  to  the  Indian  town 
that  does  much  to  supply  the  market  of  Ibague. 


TOLIMA.  337 

I  followed  the  plain  up  a  long  way,  and  then  descended  to 
the  lower  grounds  of  the  Combeima  by  a  steep,  zigzag,  paved 
road.  The  agricultural  spirit  of  the  Indians  has  filled  this  val- 
ley with  little  properties  and  little  cottages,  and  I  gladly  follow- 
ed the  river  up  to  a  ford  that  I  was  not  willing  to  cross  without 
necessity.  What  with  rain,  and  mud,  and  the  obstinacy  of  the 
mule,  the  trip  did  not  pay. 

I  bathed  in  all  these  rivers,  but  the  best  place  was  found  by 
going  down  the  Combeima,  and  crossing  by  a  frail  foot-bridge,  a 
little  above  its  junction  with  the  Coello,  to  that  stream.  They 
are  of  about  equal  size.  The  Chiapalo  is  much  smaller,  but 
warmer  and  nearer. 

I  do  not  like  the  Ibaguenos.  I  have  not  found  so  unsociable 
a  people  in  the  whole  country.  Except  the  attentions  that  my 
letter  of  introduction  compelled,  and  the  official  courtesies  of  the 
gobernador,  neither  of  which  were  scanted  at  all,  the  only  atten- 
tions I  received  were  from  the  priest.  I  am  sorry  for  this,  for 
there  seems  nothing  wanting  to  Ibague  but  good  society,  or  even 
the  ordinary  amount  of  Granadan  hospitality  and  sociability. 

In  leaving,  I  had  my  first  and  last  difficulty  about  a  bill.  My 
house-rent  was  made  $1  60  by  charging  to  me  all  the  vacant 
rooms  that  were  accessible  to  me.  I  decided  to  pay  only  for 
what  I  had  used.  Not  a  symptom  of  accommodation  did  her 
ladyship  show  all  the  time  my  packing  was  going  on,  till  it  seem- 
ed to  me  that  I  should  either  leave  without  paying,  or  have  some 
experience  of  the  Granadan  Code  of  Procedure,  which  I  was  not 
unwilling  to  try.  Five  minutes  before  starting,  however,  the 
terms  were  reduced  to  eight  dimes.  I  gave  her  a  dollar,  for  I 
thought  the  experiment  was  worth  the  balance.  It  was  the 
most  quiet  quarrel  I  ever  had,  for  not  an  unkind  word  was  ut- 
tered in  the  whole  of  it. 

Y 


338  NEW  GRANADA. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

THE    BACK    TRACK. 

A  Crash  Towel. — Excellent  Family. — A  Grahadan  Ghost. — Piedras. — How  to  ex- 
tinguish a  Cigar. — Rio  Seco. — Drowning  in  Dry  River. — Neme  and  Bitumen. — 
Sulphur  Water  and  something  stronger. — Granadan  drunk  and  noisy. — Tocai- 
ma. — Sky-roofed  Prison. — Fall  of  Horses. — Juntas  de  Apulo. — Muddy  Rivers 
and  muddy  Roads.  —  Anapoima. — Mesa. — Road  round  a  Hill. — Presidio. — 
Hospital. — Surveillance. — Volcan. — School  Examination. — Tertulia. — Expe- 
dition to  Tequendama. — The  Laggards. — Tena. — A  cool  Drink. — A  Fast. — 
Affectionate  Reception. 

I  AM  on  the  back  track  this  morning.  I  am  on  horseback, 
and  entangled  in  with  others,  so  that  I  am  no  longer  the  inde- 
pendent man  that  I  was  when  on  foot,  and  happy  with  only 
three  bestias — two  quadrupeds  and  a  biped — I  crossed  the  Tier- 
ra  Caliente  before.  Our  baggage  is  off  some  time  since,  under 
the  charge  of  a  thief,  who  has  already  been  helping  me  trans- 
act some  of  my  business.  He  employed  a  woman  to  do  some 
washing  for  me.  He  assured  me  that  the  articles  were  all  safe- 
ly returned ;  but  I  missed  a  towel — my  only  crash  towel. 

Towels  here  are  generally  made  of  plain  cotton  cloth,  and, 
though  often  embroidered  with  red,  are  not  what  our  wet  hands 
demand.  This  crash  was  a  new  article  to  her,  and  seemed  cheap 
enough  to  be  stolen,  and  dense  enough  to  be  highly  desirable, 
so  the  affair  was  determined  on.  It  so  happened  that  we  ate  for 
a  day  or  two  at  the  house  where  the  washer-woman  harbored. 
Our  horses  were  at  the  doors,  all  bills  settled,  and  we  ready  to 
mount,  when  I  had  the  washer-woman  called  in,  and  told  her 
that  I  wanted  my  towel.  It  cost  me  great  trouble  to  make  her 
understand  that  it  was  not  a  night-shirt,  a  pocket-handkerchief, 
a  ruana  that  I  wanted.  The  word  toalla  is  not  used  here,  and 
she  could  not  understand  its  equivalents.  Then  she  went  to  her 
box,  and  drew  forth  article  after  article.  She  had  got  the  box 
half  emptied;  I  stood  patiently  looking  on,  till  out  came  the 
towel ;  she  seemed  much  pleased  to  find  something  that  I  would 
like,  and  gave  it  to  me  with  an  air  of  satisfaction  that  really 


GHOST  STORY.  339 

looked  like  generosity.  I  felt  like  rewarding  her  with  a  dime  or 
two,  but  refrained,  and  thanked  her  cordially,  tied  the  towel  round 
my  waist,  wished  her  good-day,  sprung  into  the  saddle,  and  was 
soon  out  of  town. 

I  was  soon  after  on  the  same  plain  from  which  I  had  entered 
Ibague,  but  on  a  different  side  of  it.  In  coming,  I  had  been  with- 
in a  mile  or  two  of  the  Coello ;  I  now  took  a  more  southerly 
course,  near  the  Chipalo.  Few  were  the  houses  on  the  road,  but 
the  other  side  of  the  river  was  very  beautiful  to  me,  presenting 
a  constant  succession  of  houses  and  farms.  Probably  the  land 
is  easier  to  work  there  than  on  this  stony  plain. 

I  soon  had  another  pleasant  surprise.  We  turned  into  a  little 
side  path  an  hour  or  two  from  Ibague,  and  I  was  suddenly  intro- 
duced to  the  pleasant  family  of  Dr.  Pereira.  It  was  remarkable 
for  the  degree  of  education  to  which  the  younger  members  had 
attained ;  I  greatly  regretted  not  having  met  them  sooner.  One 
of  the  sons,  Dr.  Nicolas  Pereira  (Gamba),  has  published  a  poem 
on  Don  Angel  Lei.  The  author  condemns  it  as  faulty  and  ex- 
travagant, and  he  is  right.  He  intends  to  rewrite  it. 

I  should  have  spoken  of  Don  Anjel,  and  also  of  that  sleepy 
convent  of  San  Diego  in  Bogota.  His  body  was  buried  there 
about  1820,  the  last  interment  that  there  has  been  in  the  chapel 
of  the  convent.  Lei  was  an  officer  in  the  guard  of  the  Viceroy 
before  he  turned  monk.  He  had  engaged  himself  to  Luisa  San- 
doval,  one  of  the  belles  of  the  day  in  Bogota,  who  died.  It  is 
possible  that  her  death  wrought  his  conversion,  but  the  tale  runs 
in  various  ways,  all  different  from  that.  I  receive  it  that  he  was 
sitting  by  the  side  of  Luisa  at  a  bull-feast,  when  he  .became  fas- 
cinated with  a  new  face,  irresistible  to  him.  At  Sandoval's  he 
was  dull  that  evening,  and  left  early.  In  the  street  he  met  the 
unknown,  who  took  his  arm  with  an  air  of  innocence  rather  than 
boldness.  They  walked  in  various  directions,  and  at  last  cross- 
ed over  the  Bridge  of  San  Francisco,  went  one  block  north,  and 
turned  down  under  the  bridge  between  the  two  convents,  and 
entered  a  splendid  house,  brilliantly  lighted.  They  saw  no  liv- 
ing soul.  With  an  infantile  affection,  she  led  him  from  room  to 
room.  At  the  earliest  dawn  he  roused  himself  from  a  bed  of 
guilt  and  shame,  and  hastened  to  the  palace  to  his  morning  du- 
ties. He  had  left  his  watch  and  sword  hung  on  two  ornamental 


340  NEW  GRANADA. 

hooks  at  the  bed's  head.  After  breakfast  he  sought  the  house 
of  the  unknown,  and  found  it  an  old  ruin !  He  ventured  up  the 
broken  stair,  and  over  perilous  floors,  till,  where  the  bed  should 
have  been,  he  saw  his  watch  and  sword  suspended  from  two 
rusty  spikes ;  but  the  floor  was  so  broken  that  they  were  inac- 
cessible. He  left  them,  hastened  away,  and  became  a  monk. 

Others  say  that,  on  his  way  home  from  the  spectral  house,  he 
met  a  spectral  procession  bearing  the  body  of  Luisa ;  others 
again,  that  he  found  his  watch  and  sword  hanging  on  two  human 
bones  projecting  from  the  walls  of  the  cemetery ;  others  still, 
that  he  awoke  that  morning  with  a  skeleton  in  his  arms.  Where 
there  are  monks  there  will  be  fables.  But  ghosts  and  fairies 
seem  to  all  to  be  of  Northern  origin.  The  scarcity  of  them,  or 
their  absence  from  Southern  Europe,  needs  to  be  inquired  into. 
I  asked  the  Spanish  of  ghost,  and  they  thought  that  alma  ben- 
dita — blessed  soul — came  nearest  to  it.  This  supernatural  girl 
they  called  an  hada. 

Dr.  Gamba  has  the  best  floor  that  I  have  seen  in  New  Gran- 
ada. It  is  of  some  calcareous  cement,  that  unites  the  two  excel- 
lences of  being  hard  and  not  inclined  to  crack.  As  no  wooden 
floors  are  to  be  thought  of,  it  is  quite  desirable  that  something 
that  can  be  kept  clean,  as  rammed  earth  can  not,  and  that  shall 
be  more  agreeable  than  bricks,  should  be  found  for  this  use.  I 
fear,  however,  that,  in  most  places,  lime  will  be  found  beyond 
the  means  of  the  peasantry,  but  with  good  roads  bitumen  would 
be  attainable  over  the  whole  country. 

With  young  Pereira's  Anjel  Lei  in  my  pocket,  we  were  soon 
on  the  plain  again.  We  went  northeast  toward  a  high,  detach- 
ed hill,  behind  which  lay  Piedras.  A  detached  range  of  steep 
hills  ran  due  north,  separating  this  inclined  plane  from  the  low- 
er horizontal  plains  on  the  banks  of  the  Magdalena.  This  range 
we  approached  obliquely.  The  whole  plain  might  be  called 
piedras — stones — only  there  is  said  to  be,  at  a  place  called  Cua- 
tro  Esquinas,  an  intermission  of  them ;  but  if  so,  I  passed  it 
unnoticed. 

It  was  dark  when  we  struck  into  the  gorge  between  the  hills, 
crossing  quite  a  stream  twice.  It  was  the  Opia ;  and  we  were 
finally  on  the  left  bank  of  it,  but  on  ground  much  higher  than 
its  bed.  We  had  some  difficulty  in  finding  posada,  but  at  length 


PIEDRAS.  341 

we  joined  ourselves  to  some  others,  bound  also  to  Bogota,  and 
secured  a  sala  to  ourselves.  It  was  rather  warm,  especially  aft- 
er the  cold  nights  of  Ibague.  Water  was  scarce  with  us,  and, 
thirsty  and  tired,  I  was  glad  to  get  into  my  hammock.  Most  of 
our  party  slept  in  the  piazza  till  a  night-rain  drove  them  in. 
Then  I  had  almost  to  fight  with  a  cigar,  that  I  could  not  endure 
in-doors  in  so  crowded  a  room.  It  was  only  as  I  was  about  to 
employ  all  the  water  that  we  had  left  in  extinguishing  it  where 
it  shone,  that,  to  save  this  waste  of  water,  the  smoker  abandon- 
ed his  cigar.  Next  day  it  turned  out  that  the  annoyance  was 
from  an  impudent  servant,  and  I  was  sorry  I  had  not  thrown 
the  water  without  the  warning,  for  it  is  a  breach  of  all  decorum 
for  a  servant  to  smoke  in  the  presence  of  superiors.  He  was 
only  carrying  out  the  familiar  Spanish  proverb  that  "  in  the  dark 
all  cats  are  gray." 

Next  day  I  went  to  a  steep  hillock,  just  out  of  town,  for 
plants,  and  was  struck  with  the  movements  of  two  black  birds 
with  long  tails.  They  were  following  the  motions  of  a  hog. 
They  kept  on  the  ground  a  yard  from  him,  one  on  each  side, 
and  following  him  as  faithfully  as  his  shadow.  This  they  did 
for  a  long  time.  I  conjectured  that  they  were  picking  up  fleas 
that  left  him. 

Piedras  stands  on  a  table  of  land  an  hour  or  two  from  the 
Magdalena.  It  consists  of  thatch  houses  mostly,  or,  properly, 
huts.  On  the  Plaza  resides  a  character  that  I  had  a  strong  de- 
sire to  see  when  it  was  too  late.  He  was  described  to  me  as  a 
man  of  great  wealth,  sense,  liberality,  and  eccentricity.  After 
leaving,  I  was  shown  a  distant  hill,  crowned  with  what  I  should 
have  taken  for  a  German  castle,  but  they  told  me  it  was  built 
as  the  last  resting-place  for  his  family.  Much  of  his  liberality 
is  said  to  be  in  secret. 

We  had  a  long  descent  to  the  ferry  of  Opia,  so  called  because 
it  is  at  the  mouth  of  that  river,  and  there  we  were  detained  some 
hours.  Here  I  noticed  a  sand-bank  washing  away  at  the  rate 
of  some  inches  per  minute.  The  baggage  of  an  incautious  trav- 
eler might  easily  be  swept  off  so.  I  would  have  been  glad  to 
spend  a  part  of  this  long  interval  in  bathing,  but  a  wholesome 
fear  of  the  raia — a  ray-fish,  with  a  formidable  sting — detained 
me.  As  we  rose  from  the  river  on  the  east  side,  I  found  abun- 


342  NEW  GRANADA. 

dant  specimens  of  Melocactus,  or  Mammillaria,  a  plant  I  have 
seen  nowhere  else  out  of  green-houses.  A  dense  patch  of  it 
would  be  impassable. 

At  length  we  came  out  to  cultivated  grounds.  Here  we 
found  the  most  luxuriant  feed  I  have  ever  seen  in  all  my  trav- 
els. The  price  was  a  cuartillo  per  beast  for  a  night.  We  were 
on  the  banks  of  the  infamous  Rio  Seco.  Its  name  is  a  stupen- 
dous lie :  instead  of  being  dry,  it  was  as  full  as  it  could  hold. 
I  found  a  friend  of  a  friend  waiting  for  it  to  fall.  He  had  wait- 
ed till  he  was  tired,  had  examined  the  river,  and,  much  against 
my  wishes,  they  all  decided  to  advance  after  we  had  been  there 
an  hour. 

I  stood  and  trembled  on  the  bank,  while  some  precious  col- 
lections found  their  way  across  dry,  as  I  then  supposed ;  but, 
unfortunately,  when  the  evil  was  past  remedy,  I  found  the  dam- 
age was  serious.  To  be  ready  for  emergencies,  I  had  disen- 
cumbered myself  of  clothing  before  my  cargas  entered  the  river. 
I  then  left  my  horse  in  care  of  a  servant,  and  walked  across,  as 
I  do  not  like  entanglement  in  any  difficulty.  A  rare  and  inter- 
esting tree  overhung  the  bank  where  I  came  out,  and  I  was 
eagerly  stripping  it  of  its  flowers,  when  I  heard  some  one  coolly 
remark,  "That  boy  will  drown."  I  turned  round,  and  saw  a 
boy  of  about  twelve  rapidly  washing  down  stream,  and  none 
were  moving.  I  plunged  in,  and  brought  him  out,  scarce  able 
to  stand  from  fatigue  and  fright.  Catholics,  I  think,  are  less 
impressed  with  the  loss  of  life,  as,  the  sooner  one  dies,  the  less 
they  are  apt  to  suffer  in  Purgatory. 

We  followed  up  the  left  bank  of  Rio  Seco  till  dark,  when  we 
reached  a  good  posada  at  Neme.  Neme  means  bitumen,  of 
which  there  are  copious  deposits  in  some  parts  of  New  Grana- 
da. I  saw  traces  of  it  north  of  Ibague,  but  none  here.  At 
Mendez,  a  little  above  Honda,  there  are  immense  deposits  of  it. 
A  patch  or  two  of  sidewalk,  and  a  little  of  floor,  in  Bogota,  are 
the  only  instances  of  its  use  that  I  have  seen.  Here  we  met  a 
large  company  of  travelers  bound  west,  and  our  two  parties  had 
a  good  time  generally.  In  this  I  could  not  share,  on  account 
of  the  labor  my  plants  demanded,  and  the  exhaustion  caused,  1 
verily  believe,  by  the  anxiety  I  had  while  my  treasures  were 
braving  the  fury  of  that  infamous  Dry  River. 


TOCAIMA.  343 

In  the  morning,  instead  of  keeping  the  left-hand  road,  that 
had  half  a  dozen  or  a  dozen  more  crossings  of  Eio  Seco  to  make, 
we  took  another.  We  were  rising  a  little  out  of  the  Seco  val- 
ley, when  we  stopped  more  to  commemorate  our  fast  than  to 
break  it.  In  fact,  things  were  looking  a  little  like  famine.  We 
ate  some  roasted  bananas,  so  insipid  as  to  seem  innutritious. 
The  inhabitants  of  the  little  hut  strip  off  a  certain  kind  of  bark 
for  tying  bundles  of  tobacco  and  cigars.  They  had  nothing  that 
they  could  sell  us.  Farther  on  I  collected  a  most  singular  fruit 
of  a  tree  or  vine  that  I  snatched  at  in  riding  past.  I  mistook 
the  follicles  for  floral  leaves  until  better  informed.  Soon  I  came 
to  a  large  stream  of  sulphur-water,  that  diffused  its  odors  for  a 
great  distance.  Hasty  as  was  my  exploration  of  this,  it  was  an 
hour  before  I  overtook  my  company  again. 

We  had  risen  over  an  immense  ridge,  and  had  descended 
again  into  the  valley  of  the  Bogota,  when  I  overtook  them  at  a 
place  where  spirits  and  guarapo  were  sold.  A  mixture  of  the 
two  was  passed  round  and  pronounced  excellent.  I  stopped  but 
a  few  moments,  and  hurried  on,  that  I  might  have  more  time  to 
loiter.  In  an  hour  they  overtook  me,  and  the  friend  of  my 
friend  was  "roaring  drunk."  He  raced,  shouted,  reeled,  till  he 
seemed  past  recovery — caught  his  predecessor's  beast  by  the  tail, 
and  cut  more  antics  in  one  half  hour  than  usually  occur  in  New 
Granada  between  one  earthquake  and  tJie  next.  It  is  contrary 
to  nature  here  to  be  otherwise  than  stupid  and  quiet  in  drink. 
I  am  assured  that  he  drank  but  moderately,  but  I  have  always 
had  a  prejudice  against  moderate  drinking  of  intoxicating  liquors. 
Especially  I  wish  to  see  no  more  experiments  of  thirsty  men  on 
guarapo  and  rum  mixed  together.  By  the  time  we  had  entered 
Tocaima  he  had  subsided  into  a  quiet  gentleman  again. 

Purgatory  has  been  called  the  Tocaima  of  the  future  world. 
I  must  say  it  is  warm  at  Tocaima,  especially  considering  its  el- 
evation. No  warmer  spot  is  known  for  a  hundred  miles.  It 
was  midday  when  we  arrived,  and  Tocaima  was  doing  its  pret- 
tiest. We  waited  an  hour  or  two.  Tocaima  looks  like  a  de- 
cayed town.  I  went  out  to  explore,  and  saw  a  roofless  house 
with  barred  windows.  This  pen  was  the  prison.  I  think  there 
was  shelter  from  rain  in  some  part  of  it.  Opposite  this  was  a 
ruined  convent. 


344  NEW  GRANADA. 

As  soon  as  the  heat  would  permit  we  proceeded,  and  at  length 
reached  the  banks  of  the  Bogota.  It  was  swollen,  and  of  a  hid- 
eous blackness,  rolling  mud  as  fluid  as  water.  Its  waters  pass 
over  decomposing  shales  and  carboniferous  strata.  If  Rio  Sucio 
is  nastier  than  this,  I  hope  never  to  see  it.  I  find  we  have 
not  taken  the  best  road  for  a  tourist.  There  is  a  hill  of  enor- 
mous height,  called  the  Volador,  hereabouts,  and  the  riding- 
beasts  might  have  been  got  over  there,  by  favoring  them  a  little, 
in  less  time.  As  we  followed  up  the  Bogota,  one  horse  gave  out 
entirely,  and  was  sold.  Several  of  us  took  to  our  feet.  I  was 
walking  along  leisurely,  when  three  beasts  before  me  turned  into 
an  open  gate,  and  went  up  a  steep  path  through  a  pasture.  I 
followed,  caught  the  rear  one,  and  mounted.  The  others  reach- 
ed a  closed  gate  at  the  top,  and  followed  a  fence  along  in  the 
same  direction  that  the  road  went  below.  I  followed,  and  just 
was  reaching  out  my  hand  to  seize  the  bridle  of  one,  when  I  saw 
them  both  slowly  sink  before  my  eyes  in  a  thicket  of  bushes. 
I  gave  the  alarm  to  the  owner,  and  urged  him  to  go  with  me  and 
get  help  at  a  house  at  the  top  of  the  hill.  He  believed  there 
was  no  danger ;  it  was  now  dark ;  the  posada  of  Juntas  was 
just  around  the  hill ;  he  would  send  back  a  baquiano  (one  ac- 
quainted with  the  spot)  from  there.  So  we  went  on.  We  pass- 
ed a  land-slide — derrumbe — at  a  risk  of  ourselves  sliding  down 
into  the  dirty  river,  and  soon  arrived  at  the  best  posada  I  have 
seen  in  all  the  land. 

The  landlord  (posadero)  assured  us  that  there  was  no  such  hole 
as  I  thought  I  saw,  and  that  a  servant  would  doubtless  find  the 
horses  quietly  feeding  there.  He  went,  and  did  not  find  them. 
Next  morning  a  peon  was  sent  toward  Tocaima  for  them,  and 
was  gone  some  hours.  Breakfast  was  over,  and  my  friend  learn- 
ed that  the  pasture  was  bounded  on  one  side  by  a  cliff  nearly 
perpendicular.  Half  way  down  that  cliff,  in  plain  sight  of  their 
fellows  at  the  door  of  the  posada,  stood  the  two  horses  within 
musket-shot  of  us.  How  they  got  there  alive,  or  how  they  were 
to  be  taken  down  or  up  except  piecemeal,  was  more  than  I  could 
tell.  I  was  glad  to  see  the  owner  shed  tears.  But  in  half  an 
hour  the  truants  were  down,  making  a  hearty  breakfast,  and  I 
was  off. 

This  place  has  something  of  a  historical  interest.     In  May, 


DISSEKTATION  ON  MUD.  345 

1851,  the  Dictator  Urdaneta  found  himself  with  a  veteran  army 
to  support  him,  and  an  almost  unanimous  nation  against  him. 
His  friend,  Garcia  Delrio,  met  General  Lopez,  since  President, 
and  made  a  treaty  with  him,  which  resulted  in  the  re-establish- 
ment of  Vice-president  Caicedo  in  the  supreme  power.  When 
the  Congress  refused  to  permit  to  Urdaneta's  friends  the  advant- 
ages promised  in  that  treaty,  Caicedo  retired  from  office,  and 
Congress  appointed  General  Obando  in  his  place. 

Juntas  means  junction.  Here  the  dirty  Apulo  meets  the  dirty 
Bogota.  At  this  posada  money  can  procure,  for  man  and  beast, 
all  that  travelers  need.  Rings  are  placed  in  the  wall  (as  I  learn- 
ed in  the  morning)  for  hanging  hammocks.  The  hanging  of  mine 
is  often  quite  a  task,  and  was  so  here.  The  posadero  is  a  So- 
corrano.  Socorro  is  the  Yankeedom  of  New  Granada.  Here  I 
passed  a  wooden  bridge,  eight  feet  wide,  roofed  with  zinc,  over 
the  Apulo,  and  rose  at  once  to  a  great  height  on  a  tongue  of  land 
between  it  and  the  Bogota,  though  a  much  better  road  might 
be  made  nearer  the  Bogota  without  rising.  Here  the  road  was 
abominable  from  steepness  and  from  mud.  There  are  two  grades 
of  muddy 'road.  One  is  almohadillado,  or  pillowed.  It  has 
ridges  running  across  the  road,  about  two  feet  from  crest  to  crest. 
These  are  of  hard,  slippery  earth,  and  the  mule  steps  over  them, 
putting  his  feet  down  into  deep  mud  holes  between.  These 
ridges  lie  like  pillows  (almohadillos),  with  mud  holes  between. 
They  have  been  called  mule-ladders  in  English.  A  man  can 
walk  on  them,  but  if  he  slips  he  goes  in  deep.  Some  horses, 
lightly  estimating  the  value  of  their  riders'  necks,  will  walk  on 
them,  in  spite  of  your  fears. 

On  almohadillado  you  can  make  more  than  a  mile  an  hour,  at 
the  worst ;  but  it  may  degenerate  into  an  atascadero,  that  is, 
the  ridges  may  be  reduced  to  uniform  mud  of  indefinite  depth. 
The  holes  in  almohadillado  can  be  no  deeper  than  the  length  of 
a  mule's  legs.  An  atascadero,  when  it  becomes  impassable  to 
the  strongest  beast,  grows  no  deeper.  That  is  a  consolation. 
Neither  almohadillado  nor  an  atascadero  can  exist  where  the 
steepness  of  the  road  exceeds  45°.  The  place  of  both  is  there 
supplied  by  a  resbaladero,  or  sliding-place.  Some  magnificent 
specimens  of  resbaladero  are  said  to  be  a  rod  long,  steep  as  the 
roof  of  a  house,  and  as  smooth  as  an  otter-slide.  I  have  never 
seen  fair  specimens  of  this. 


346  NEW  GRANADA. 

By  the  time  the  reader  has  mastered  in  sound  and  sense 
these  three  slippery  and*  sticky  Spanish  words,  he  may  imagine 
me  to  have  contended  with  the  realities,  to  have  met  an  im- 
mense drove  of  mules  carrying  masses  of  salt  in  coarse  nets  on 
their  way  from  Cipaquira  to  Popayan,  nearly  300  miles,  and  to 
have  descended  into  an  enormous  hollow.  Here  I  took  a  nice 
bath,  and  was  again  high  up  the  hill  at  a  venta  when  the  first 
of  my  party  overtook  me.  We  toiled  on,  and  did  not  all  unite 
till  we  had  reached  Anapoima. 

A  nice  place  is  Anapoima.  It  has  a  good  posada  for  the 
rich,  a  free  tambo  for  the  poor,  and  a  venta  for  both.  We  fared 
sumptuously  here.  The  enterprising  proprietor  has,  among 
other  things,  a  blacksmith's  shop  and  an  English  smith,  and 
back  of  his  house,  down  toward  the  Bogota,  here  in  sight  be- 
neath you,  but  out  of  hearing,  a  cane-field,  no  doubt,  and  a  cane- 
mill.  I  particularly  noticed  a  vine  in  his  patio.  I  see  no  rea- 
son why  it  should  not  do  well  here,  only  the  grape  will  not 
succeed  well  without  care. 

Here  I  mounted  again,  and  we  soon  were  on  our  way.  A 
more  pleasant  road  than  I  had  lately  seen  ran  along  a  ridge  till 
it  began  to  ascend  another  steep  hill.  At  the  left  there  was  a 
private  residence  so  surprisingly  like  a  convent — chapel,  bell- 
tower,  and  all — as  to  deceive  a  practiced  eye.  The  road  up  the 
hill  itself  was  paved,  but  the  moment  you  reach  the  top  you 
strike  a  straight  macadamized  street  running  a  mile  or  two  up 
a  gentle  grade.  It  is  the  principal  street  of  the  town  of  LA 
MESA  DE  JUAN  BIAS.  This  mesa  is  a  plain  or  table-land, 
bounded  by  abrupt  descents  in  every  direction.  The  principal 
street  runs  near  the  northern  edge,  where  beneath  flows  the 
Apulo.  The  task  of  descending  to  it  is  very  severe.  South  of 
the  town  are  fields.  These,  too,  end  abruptly  by  an  even 
steeper  descent  to  the  Bogota.  The  table  was  once  connected 
by  a  ridge  with  the  grand  ascent  to  the  plain  of  Bogota,  but 
that  ridge  too  has  sunk  far  below  the  table,  and  in  the  depres- 
sion stands  the  town  of  Tena. 

It  seems  as  if  Mesa  ought  to  be  without  water.  In  fact, 
rain  water  is  used  to  a  considerable  extent,  but  there  is  quite 
a  spring  just  south  of  the  town,  where  washerwomen  congre- 
gate. It  is  one  of  the  highest  spots  in  which  oranges  grow. 


LA  MESA.  347 

I  had  no  thermometer  with  me,  but  I  have  a  strong  suspicion 
that  the  temperature  is  put  too  high  by  Caldas,  72.5°.  Mos- 
quera  gives  it  even  three  degrees  higher.  I  think  it  must  be 
near  70°.  The  difficulty  of  access  to  bathing-places  seems  to 
be  the  chief  objection  to  Mesa  as  a  place  to  go  from  Bogota  to 
change  climate.  It  is  free  from  the  clouds  of  Guaduas,  and  the 
climate  to  me  is  delightful. 

We  found  a  delightful  and  pleasant  home  in  the  family,  not 
merely  the  house,  of  Senor  Juan  Triana,  now  no  more.  Don 
Juan  spoke  English  enough  for  all  necessary  purposes,  and  his 
amiable  lady  was  a  well-educated  Granadina.  Her  name  is 
Manuela  Caicedo :  she  was  born  in  Choco,  or  in  the  Cauca. 
Her  table,  spread  in  the  patio  under  an  awning,  was  the  best 
that  I  have  seen  in  New  Granada. 

At  her  table  I  met  the  Gobernador,  Justo  Briceno.  The  three 
cantons  of  Mesa,  Fusagasuga,  and  Tocaima  then  constituted  the 
province  of  Tequendama,  and  Mesa  was  the  capital.  A  more 
efficient  officer  than  Briceno  could  not  be  found.  He  was  first 
appointed  by  the  President,  and,  at  the  change  of  Constitution, 
elected  by  the  people.  He  was  particularly  interested  in  high- 
ways, and  needs  nothing  more  than  the  practical  knowledge  of 
a  northern  teamster  to  make  him  all  that  could  be  desired.  We 
passed,  on  the  road  to  Tena,  a  piece  of  new  road  that  ran  round 
a  hill.  It  was  clear  that  the  old  road  on  the  ridge  could  be 
mended  for  less  than  the  new,  shorter,  level  road  would  cost,  and 
they  called  him  crazy  for  encountering  the  extra  expense.  I 
went  over  the  hill  from  curiosity.  The  ascent  and  descent  were 
prodigious,  as  bad  as  the  worst  in  some  New  England  counties. 
The  mule-ladders  were  beautifully  developed.  And  the  dis- 
tance was  double.  I  wish  New  Granada  had  more  crazy  road- 
makers. 

The  fine  road  through  the  streets  of  Mesa  is  at  the  cost  of 
the  nation.  The  province  is  not  obliged  to  spend  a  dollar  on  it, 
but  it  might  exact  toll  of  all  that  pass  over  it.  Every  carga 
of  molasses  that  enters  Bogota  from  here  pays  a  toll  at  Puente 
Grande  to  the  province  of  Bogota.  Briceno  sees  the  impolicy 
and  injustice  of  such  impositions.  He  is  extending  this  good 
road  up  to  the  plains  of  Bogota.  It  is  not  intended  for  a  wheel- 
road,  and,  I  fear,  will,  in  some  places,  be  too  steep. 


348  NEW  GRANADA. 

A  detachment  of  the  Presidio  is  making  the  road.  I  saw  one 
company  near  Tena,  and  another  a  little  east  of  La  Mesa.  The 
troops  that  guard  them  are  part  of  the  regular  army,  and  are 
under  the  command  of  the  governor.  The  prisoners  sleep  in  an 
ordinary  cottage,  and,  by  day  and  night,  have  no  other  wall 
around  them  than  lead.  They  beg  of  the  passers-by  on  every 
occasion.  Seiior  Triana  was  contractor  for  furnishing  the  pre- 
sidio with  food  and  drink.  They  drink  large  quantities  of 
guarapo.  We  drank  the  same  at  the  table. 

The  Hospital  of  the  province  and  that  of  the  presidio  were  one 
and  the  same.  It  is  an  ordinary  cottage  of  two  or  three  rooms 
and  a  kitchen.  Things  there  could  not  well  be  worse.  In  the 
kitchen  were  no  conveniences  for  cooking.  The  floors  are  in- 
fested with  niguas,  so  that  they  destroy  life.  Half  the  cases 
here  were  large  superficial  ulcers.  The  governor  is  sure  that 
they  are  not  made  on  purpose,  but  I  must  doubt. 

I  was  in  the  Gobernacion  one  day,  when  a  man  came  in,  who, 
addressing  the  secretary,  Senor  Guzman,  said, 

"I  am  here,  Senor." 

"  Very  well ;  where  have  you  been  ?" 

"  I  have  been  at  work  on  the  estate  of  Don  Fulano." 

"  Will  you  continue  there  ?" 

"I  shall  for  the  present." 

"Very  well;  come  again  this  day  two  weeks." 

The  secretary  had  opened  a  book  and  made  a  record  of  the 
interview. 

"  Who  was  that  ?"  I  asked. 

"  It  is  a  man  condemned  to  a  certain  period  of  prison  and 
another  of  surveillance — vigilancia.  His  imprisonment  has  ex- 
pired, but  he  can  not  pass  certain  bounds,  and  we  must  see  him 
regularly,  and  know  where  he  is  and  what  he  does." 

"What  trouble  to  you  and  him!  We  have  not  in  the  En- 
glish language  such  a  word  even  as  surveillance.  We  use  the 
French.  Had  he  been  at  the  North,  he  might  perhaps  have  been 
let  off  on  condition  of  never  coming  again  where  he  is  known." 

The  secretary  stared.  "  And  do  you  think  a  rogue  does  less 
damage  where  he  is  unknown  ?" 

"  No,  I  can  not  say  that ;  but  then  the  evil  that  he  does  will 
not  harm  us." 


SUBTEKEANEAN  FIEE.  349 

"  Ah !  that  indeed,"  and  the  good  official  shrugged  his  shoul- 
ders, as  if  to  say,  "That  plan  is  good  enough  for  heretics." 

I  went  to  the  provincial  prison  to  see  a  noted  presidario  of 
good  family,  Francisco  Morales.  He  had  entered  into  a  plan 
with  a  doctor  and  a  judge.  They  had  poisoned  a  priest  of  Bo- 
gota, held  a  coroner's  inquest  on  his  body,  administered  his 
estate,  and  robbed  it.  The  robbery  only  could  be  proved,  and 
Pacho  Morales,  as  he  is  called,  was  condemned  to  the  Presidio. 
He  has  worried  poor  Briceno  terribly.  He  asks  whether  any 
arrangement  could  be  made  at  our  best  prisons  to  accommodate 
so  refractory  a  fellow.  He  has  not  succeeded  in  getting  a  stroke 
of  work  out  of  him  yet. 

Once  he  commenced  abusive  and  seditious  declamations.  A 
trumpeter  was  stationed  by  him,  and  commanded  to  blow  every 
time  he  tried  to  speak.  He  chained  him  to  a  post,  and  has 
punished  him  to  the  last  extent  he  dare,  and  now  Pacho  shams 
sickness.  I  wish  I  were  his  doctor  a  little  while.  I  found  him 
with  his  window  toward  the  street  stopped  up  (a  great  griev- 
ance), and  a  sentinel  in  sight  of  him  continually.  He  was  quite 
penitent,  as  he  would  have  me  think,  and  asked  me  for  a  Bible. 
Don  Justo  is  fearing  that  he  will  make  his  escape. 

One  day  I  crossed  the  Apulo  to  see  a  volcan  on  the  opposite 
slope,  on  the  road  to  Anolaima.  An  immense  descent  brought 
me  to  the  river,  eight  inches  deep,  and  charged  with  black  mud. 
A  similar  height  was  to  be  gained  on  the  nprth  bank.  Here  I 
found  a  scene  of  transcendent  interest — a  glacial  motion  of  hot 
stones  and  earth.  I  took  off  my  alpargatas,  lest  I  should  be 
betrayed  to  a  place  too  hot  to  escape  from.  I  could  walk  over 
most  places.  A  pale  smoke  was  issuing  from  some  spots.  The 
glow  of  fire  is  seen  from  some  such  places  in  the  night.  The 
slide  was  five  or  ten  rods  wide,  and  was  advancing  into  a 
thicket  of  trees,  overwhelming  them  at  the  rate  of  two  or  three 
feet  a  day.  The  sides  of  the  Jire-glacier,  so  to  speak,  were 
smooth,  and  grooved  with  the  masses  that  had  traveled  down. 
The  steepness  was  about  that  of  steep  carriage-roads.  I  sup- 
pose the  sliding  is  due  to  the  spontaneous  ignition  of  pyrites  in 
the  depths  below,  and  the  slow  combustion  of  coal.  Such  phe- 
nomena are  said  to  be  more  active  in  wet  weather,  which  fur- 
nishes water  to  the  pyrites. 


350  NEW  GRANADA. 

When  it  shall  have  advanced  a  dozen  or  two  rods  more,  it  will 
reach  a  small  pond  that  must  have  had  some  similar  origin.  It 
is  not  deep,  for  I  waded  in  some  way ;  but  they  tell  me  that 
there  is  a  treasure  in  the  centre,  in  a  large  cauldron  (fun  da), 
with  another  cauldron  reversed  over  it.  They  can  not  get  off 
the  cover.  So  said  some  peasant  women  living  near,  who  urged 
me  to  take  some  refreshment  with  them,  and  were  the  more  ear- 
nest when  I  told  them  that  I  had  no  money  with  me.  The  spot 
was  not  two  miles  air  line  from  Mesa,  but  I  found  my  trip  a  very 
fatiguing  but  interesting  day's  walk. 

These  phenomena  are  frequent,  and  I  am  coming  to  the  con- 
clusion that  all  the  rough,  irregular  valleys  west  of  the  Sabana, 
and,  perhaps,  on  all  the  western  slope  of  the  Cordillera  de  Bo- 
gota, are  the  work  of  similar  decomposition.  Signs  of  this  must 
be  sought  by  a  man  of  more  leisure  than  I  have  been. 

I  attended  an  examination  of  the  public  boys'  school.  The 
same  faults  I  had  noticed  before  were  too  plain  here ;  all  was 
rote,  and  no  thought.  I  picked  out  the  smartest  boy,  and  when 
he  went  to  the  black-board,  I  handed  to  the  gobernador  the  sum 
of  "  the  hare  and  the  greyhound."  The  hare  starts  eighty  varas 
before  the  hound,  and  runs  twenty  varas  a  minute,  while  the 
hound  runs  twenty-five.  Senor  Briceno  said  no  boy  in  school 
could  do  it.  It  passed  from  my  hands  to  my  neighbor's,  and 
then  the  master  asked  for  it.  He  left  the  examination  in  the 
hands  of  the  committee,  and  bent  all  his  energies  on  the  sum. 
In  ten  minutes  he  had  an  answer,  but  it  was  wrong. 

I  attended  a  tertulia,  or  evening  visit,  in  La  Mesa.  I  hope  I 
wrong  no  one  in  saying  I  thought  it  tedious  and  stupid.  The 
ladies,  who  were  pretty  in  the  main,  took  possession  of  a  corner 
of  the  room  that  just  held  them,  and  maintained  it.  The  gen- 
tlemen formed  a  line,  from  one  end  of  theirs  to  the  other,  through 
the  middle  of  the  room,  but  so  that  each  person  spoke  only  to 
his  next  neighbors.  No  general  conversation  went  on,  and  none 
across  the  circle.  A  couple  of  ladies  went  out  a  few  moments, 
and  I  exhorted  the  Governor,  who  was  apt  for  such  encounters, 
to  interpose  his  person  in  the  vacancy,  and  break  their  phalanx 
for  the  evening.  He  attempted  to  do  so,  but  the  ladies,  return- 
ing, claimed  their  places  in  such  a  manner  that  he  had  to  yield. 
I  attempted  to  engage  a  lady  in  conversation,  when  I  found  my- 


A  GKANADAN  EXPEDITION.  351 

self  at  one  end  of  our  line,  but  I  could  get  nothing  "but  common- 
places (the  Spanish  is  poor  in  monosyllables),  and  gave  up,  in 
fear  of  being  regarded  as  impudent  or  ill-mannered  for  convers- 
ing with  a  lady. 

From  Mesa  I  started  for  the  Falls  of  Tequendama.  We  had 
in  company  Governor  Briceno,  and  two  young  men  who  had 
never  seen  the  Salto.  A  servant  and  sumpter  mule  completed 
the  train.  We  started  late,  of  course.  Briceno  and  I  went  on 
slowly  to  Tena,  five  or  six  miles,  and  then  we  waited  for  the 
rest  hour  after  hour.  They  arrived  about  sunset,  and  we  went 
on  by  the  light  of  a  full  moon  to  pass  the  night  at  a  hacienda. 
We  lost  our  way,  and  had  a  horrible  time.  The  road  was  hardly 
fit  for  quadrupeds,  even  by  daylight.  We  began  to  feel  the  want 
of  our  dinner.  My  horse  fell  down  a  bank.  How  he  got  out,  or 
why  I  went  not  down,  I  could  not  see,  for  it  was  dark.  At  length 
we  came  to  where  a  torrent  tumbled  over  a  pile  of  stones ;  wheth- 
er it  was  in  the  road  or  out,  we  knew  not,  but  we  could  not  pass 
it.  We  turned  back,  and,  after  an  hour  more  of  dismal  wander- 
ings, we  came  to  the  Hacienda  of  Saragoza,  and  stopped  there. 

Our  beasts  were  scarcely  put  up  or  turned  loose  when  the 
owner  came  from  Bogota,  and  we  got  up  quite  a  dinner,  and  by 
eleven  we  were  taking  a  nap.  This  lasted  till  three,  and  then 
we  were  on  our  way,  with  a  baquiano  to  guide  us.  He  led  us 
to  and  over  the  pile  of  stones — a  perilous  task  in  the  dark,  and 
thus  on.  Early  in  the  morning  we  passed  the  ruins  of  San  An- 
tonio. It  was  a  town  of  which  the  site  had  been  carried  off  by 
a  volcan  or  fire-slide.  The  whole  face  of  the  country  had 
changed,  and  all  we  could  see  of  the  ruins  was  a  bit  of  the  cor- 
ner of  the  church,  half  a  mile,  it  is  said,  from  where  it  was  built. 
A  rugged,  naked  valley  occupies  the  place  of  the  plain  on  which 
San  Antonio  stood. 

A  little  farther  on  we  paused  to  take  something,  I  really  can 
not  tell  what.  Then  one  of  the  laggers  called  out  to  the  guide, 
"Baquiano,  be  spry  now;  a  real  if  you  will  run."  On  we 
started :  in  ten  rods  we  came  to  a  house  and  a  pretty  girl,  and 
the  two  worthies  must  stop  and  ask  her  some  questions.  We 
followed  on  with  the  guide  up  a  long  hill,  and  past  some  scat- 
tered houses,  and  an  Indian  settlement  called  Curzio.  But  our 
laggards  came  not,  and  we  had  no  alternative  but  slowly  to  ad- 


352  NEW   GRANADA. 

vance.  Meanwhile,  we  asked  repeatedly  for  a  guide  to  the  foot 
of  the  falls,  but  in  vain:  all  assured  us  that  no  man  could 
reach  the  spot.  About  nine  we  reached  a  point  whence  the 
falls  were  visible.  It  was  the  hill  top  at  the  head  of  the  zig- 
zag path  mentioned  on  page  279,  and  our  course  to  the  falls  is 
described  in  the  succeeding  pages. 

It  was  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  when,  returning  from  the 
head  of  the  fall,  we  again  reached  this  spot,  and  there  we  saw 
our  two  truant  friends,  who  were  now  enjoying  iheir  first  and 
last  view  of  Tequendama.  This  glimpse  of  the  upper  part  of 
the  falls  at  a  distance  was  all  the  reward  they  had  for  a  ride  of 
three  days.  When  they  left  the  pretty  girl  (how  long  they 
stopped  they  did  not  say),  they  mistook  their  road  from  that 
very  spot.  They  did  not  discover  their  mistake  till  they  were 
in  sight  of  the  Sabana.  Here  they  lured  an  Indian  girl  to 
guide  them,  and  they  had  caught  their  first  glimpse  of  the  falls, 
and  the  last,  perhaps,  for  their  lives,  just  as  it  was  time  to  re- 
turn to  Saragoza,  where  we  had  left  all  our  bedding,  etc. 

We  stopped  at  the  first  cottage  to  do  what  we  could  to  ap- 
pease our  hunger.  I  soon  left  them  there,  and  started  on  foot, 
reviewing  deliberately  and  carefully  the  scene  of  the  catastro- 
phe of  San  Antonio.  At  dark  I  was  near  Saragoza,  and,  for 
the  third  time,  threaded  in  darkness  a  trail  through  the  woods 
that  lay  between  the  house  and  the  little  footpath  that  they 
called  highway.  Our  kind  host  bade  a  servant  wash  my  feet, 
and  ordered  dinner.  Before  it  was  ready  the  party  arrived, 
two  of  them  rather  crestfallen.  Their  delays  had  spoiled  the 
whole  expedition,  and  they  had  reaped  a  corresponding  part  of 
its  benefits.  Don  Justo  had  visited  the  Salto  repeatedly,  and 
appreciates  it  as  much  as  any  Granadino  I  know. 

Our  host  brought  bitter  complaints  from  Bogota  of  sacrile- 
gious laws.  From  the  priests  had  been  taken  away  the  mo- 
nopoly of  marriage,  and  even  the  right  to  marry,  as  each  mar- 
riage had  to  be  acknowledged  before  the  District  Judge.  I 
tried  to  make  him  see  that  the  judge  did  no  more  than  give  the 
certificate,  which  the  priest  gave  before  when  he  was  a  civil 
officer;  but  he  insisted  that  it  were  better  to  leave  their  chil- 
dren to  the  consequences  of  legal  illegitimacy  than  to  receive  a 
certificate  of  marriage  from  unconsecrated  hands. 


TENA.  353 

On  the  morrow  we  had  one  of  the  earliest  Granadan  break- 
fasts I  have  ever  eaten,  and  we  were  on  our  way  soon  after  nine, 
and  in  due  time  drew  up  in  the  patio  of  the  antique  great-house 
of  Tena. 

Tena  would  be  a  fine  place  to  rusticate,  only  it  has  no  socie- 
ty and  no  market.  It  is  warm,  and  has  plenty  of  water.  It 
stands  on  the  ridge  that  extends  from  Mesa  to  the  base  of  the 
plain,  and  has  the  land  sloping  off  rapidly  down  to  the  heads  of 
the  Apulo  on  the  north,  and  the  banks  of  the  Bogota  on  the 
south.  From  here  the  road  rises  rapidly  to  the  plain  at  Barro 
Blanco. 

I  took  a  good  bath  just  after  leaving,  the  last  I  could  enjoy 
before  descending  again,  however  many  I  might  endure.  I 
climbed  on  foot,  or  rather  walked  up,  for  the  steepest  kind  of  a 
carriage-road  reaches  nearly  up — as  far  as  the  presidio  has  work- 
ed. It  might  be  made,  with  good  engineering,  a  carriage-road  all 
the  way;  but  as  no  carriage  ever  went  up  a  hill  in  New  Granada 
except  on  men's  shoulders,  it  will  not  probably  be  located  where 
such  a  thing  will  be  possible.  Already  enough  has  been  spent 
on  it  to  have  built  from  Bogota  to  the  Magdalena  a  road  as  good 
as  ordinary  mountain-roads  in  the  States. 

The  last  part  of  the  ascent  was  an  old  road  of  stairs  and  quin- 
gos.  It  was  a  real  scramble,  and  I  arrived  at  the  venta  of  Ba- 
rro Blanco  heated  and  thirsty.  There  I  met  with  a  new  bever- 
age— guaruz.  It  may  be  an.  abbreviation  of  agua  de  arroz — rice- 
water — and  seems  to  be  a  chicha  in  which  rice  has  been  substi- 
tuted for  maize.  It  was  opaque,  but  white,  instead  of  a  dirty 
yellow  like  chicha.  To  imitate  it,  I  would  take  a  mixture  of 
rice  flour,  brown  sugar,  or  panela,  and  water,  and  let  it  begin  to 
ferment  till  a  slight  taste  of  carbonic  acid  was  perceptible.  But 
the  coolness  made  it  the  most  exquisite  beverage  I  ever  tasted, 
and  I  took  a  second  draught.  I  paid  dear  for  it,  for  I  was  in 
absolute  danger.  I  had  on  my  thinnest  clothes,  was  as  hot  as 
Tocaima,  the  barometer  at  22  inches,  the  thermometer  at  65°, 
and  I  with  a  mass  of  ice,  as  it  seemed,  in  my  stomach.  I 
sprang  to  my  saddle  for  my  bayeton,  but  it  was  packed  away, 
and  I  had  nothing  to  shelter  me.  Then  I  started  to  see  if  I 
could  gain  heat  by  running.  In  so  rare  an  atmosphere  this  was 
impossible,  only  I  escaped  dying. 

Z 


354  NEW  GRANADA. 

After  two  or  three  miles  I  mounted,  shivering  still,  and  put 
on  my  encauchado  as  a  defense  from  the  cold,  and  thus  endured 
it  till  night.  The  road  lay  for  a  long  distance  among  the  hills 
that  skirt  the  plain  and  at  their  base.  We  crossed  arms  of  the 
plain,  and  were  again  among  hills.  The  road  seemed  to  be 
avoiding  water,  that  covered  large  parts  of  the  Sabana.  We  at 
length  entered  on  plain,  bridge,  causeway,  and  good  macadam- 
ized road,  all  at  the  same  time,  and  took  a  straight  line  for  Cua- 
tro  Esquinas.  There,  on  a  road  once  traversed  before,  we  pro- 
ceeded till  we  reached  the  Hacienda  of  Quito.  Here  a  cold,  po- 
lite reception,  chocolate  (no  dinner),  and  beds  awaited  us  after 
our  fatigues  since  breakfast.  We  breakfasted  next  morning  at 
11,  after  a  virtual  fast  of  26  hours  or  more,  with  an  appetite 
sharpened  by  a  ride  past  Culabrera,  over  Santuario  and  Puente 
Grande,  and  through  Fontibon. 

The  joy  of  Don  Fulano's  servants  at  my  reappearance  at  the 
door  was  extravagant.  One  of  them,  the  biggest,  if  not  the 
dirtiest,  tried  to  give  me  a  hug,  but  she  could  not  do  it  unless  I 
stooped  down  on  my  mule,  and,  as  I  would  not  understand  her 
movements,  she  contented  herself  with  shaking  hands.  The 
fat  Senora  and  her  dry  little  Quiteno  husband  saluted  me  in  the 
same  foreign  style.  It  was  good  to  get  back,  after  alL 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

CROSSING  THE   QUINDIO   MOUNTAINS. 

The  Party. — Early  Start. — Late  Dinner. — Sulphur  Mine. — Hot  Springs. — The 
Presidio. — An  Accident. — Cold  Night. — I  love  my  Neighbor,  and  she  love^ 
hers.  — Twice-told  Tale. — Boquia.  —  Balsa. — Eanchos.  —  Cartago. — Ball.  — 
Prisoner  set  free. — The  Drama  in  open  Air. 

PRESTO  !  I  am  in  Ibague  again.  Was  last  chapter  a  dream  ? 
Was  there  a  ghost  in  it  ?  Yes,  it  must  be :  here  I  am,  in  my 
hammock,  in  a  large  sala  in  Ibague.  Four  gentlemen  are  spread 
out,  two  on  tables  and  two  on  the  floor.  The  crying  of  a  babe 
has  awakened  me,  and  a  woman's  voice,  from  the  room  where  it 
is,  calls  Antonia !  Antonia !  Antonia  appears  to  be  a  black  girl 
sleeping  just  outside  of  her  mistress's  door,  and  sleeping  to  some 
purpose,  if,  indeed,  she  be  not  dead. 


THE  QUINDIO  COEDILLEEA.  355 

Yes,  it  is  even  so.  We  axe  to  start  for  the  Quindio  this 
morning,  for,  Sunday  being  market-day,  all  our  purchases  and 
those  of  the  peons  are  made,  and  we  are  to  have  an  early  start. 
An  early  start  means  to  rise  at  dawn,  or  earlier,  and  get  off  at 
ten.  We  did  not  do  so  well  as  this,  for  we  were  finally  off  just 
about  eleven. 

The  company  consists  of  five  gentlemen,  two  ladies,  three 
children,  four  servant-maids,  eleven  peons,  twenty  "five  horses 
and  mules,  and  one  dog.  Our  train  was  a  long  one — the  ladies 
on  side-saddles,  the  other  girls  astride,  two  little  boys  in  a  chair, 
one  baby  in  a  pine  box,  two  vacant  chairs  for  the  ladies,  one 
man  with  a  box  on  his  shoulders,  two  led  horses,  and  an  uncer- 
tain number  of  baggage  mules.  The  gentlemen,  of  course,  were 
mounted,  except  myself,  who  resolved  to  try  the  passage  on  foot. 
So  we  filed  down  the  bluff  to  the  banks  of  the  Combeima,  which 
\ve  crossed  on  an  ancient  substantial  bridge.  Here,  then,  I  stood 
at  the  very  foot  of  the  Quindio  mountains,  the  middle  range  of 
the  Andes. 

Quindio  is  not  received  as  the  name  of  the  chain,  but  of  this 
particular  crossing-place.  Chains  of  mountains  here  have  no 
name.  I  have  called  the  eastern  chain  the  Bogota  Range ;  this 
will  always  be  known  as  the  Quindio,  while  the  western  has 
been  called  the  Caldas  Range,  but  the  name  is  not  received.  It 
is  a  little  curious  that  Humboldt  mistook  the  name  of  this  mount- 
ain, and  always  wrote  it  Quindiu.  I  am  not  aware  that  any 
Granadan  ever  wrote  it  so. 

I  have  reserved  to  this  spot  some  remarks  that  perhaps  I 
ought  to  have  made  earlier.  The  mountains  about  me  are 
unique,  so  far  as  I  ever  have  heard.  They  are  remarkable  as 
having  at  their  feet  a  wide  plain,  sloping  down  toward  the  river 
from  a  great  height  above  it,  and  not  alluvial.  This  inclined 
plane  is  separated  from  the  horizontal,  alluvial  plains  of  the  riv- 
er by  a  chain  of  steep  but  not  high  hills,  that  I  take  to  be  sand- 
stone. 

But  the  strangest  thing  of  all  is  in  the  structure  of  the  mount- 
ain itself.  As  I  stand  here  on  the  brink  of  the  Combeima,  at  the 
very  base  of  Tolima,  you  might  imagine  crags  jutting  out  over 
my  head,  or  precipices,  from  the  base  of  which  the  road  must 
gain  the  summit  as  it  can.  It  is  not  so.  Not  a  particle  of  rock 


356  NEW   GRANADA. 

is  visible.  In  all  my  wanderings  in  and  around  this  chain,  I 
have  seen  ledge  but  twice,  if,  indeed,  more  than  once.  Slopes 
there  may  be  so  steep  that  a  fall  from  them  would  be  fatal,  and 
some  of  great  height,  almost  perpendicular,  but  in  them  I  see  no 
rock  at  all.  I  can  only  regard  it  rationally  as  some  rock  en- 
tirely disintegrated,  and  perhaps  I  must  call  it  granite,  as  where 
the  road  cuts  through  it  I  see  no  trace  of  stratification. 

Our  order  of  march  was  generally  the  cargueros,  the  girls, 
the  gentlemen  and  ladies,  and  lastly  the  baggage.  My  own 
place  was  at  my  option,  as  I  could  out-travel  them  all,  and 
needed  to  take  no  other  precaution  than  not  to  over-travel  the 
baggage  at  night.  I  kept  generally  in  advance. 

Most  of  the  road  at  the  eastern  end  was  newly  made,  but  on 
the  same  old  route  as  200  years  ago.  A  detachment  of  the 
presidio  were  then  engaged  on  it.  And  in  all  these  days  there 
was  no  diverging  path,  and  not  a  house  off  the  road,  so  there 
could  be  no  possibility  of  losing  my  way.  I  had  added  to  my 
thin  walking-dress  a  ruana,  rather  to  make  it  appear  less  nude 
than  for  comfort.  When  I  became  lonely,  had  questions  to 
ask,  or  found  something  curious,  I  would  wait  till  some  of  the 
party  came  up.  The  whole  distance  is  called  eighty-seven 
miles,  but  it  would  make  a  great  difference  whether  you  reckon- 
ed the  slopes  or  only  their  bases.  It  would  be  more  useful  to 
estimate  a  journey  by  the  height  ascended  and  descended,  as 
the  horizontal  distance  matters  little  in  comparison. 

We  ascended  incessantly  for  some  hours  to  and  past  Palmilla. 
This  is  not  a  village,  but  only  a  house  or  two.  Then  came 
a  long  farewell  to  cultivation,  a  long  descent,  and  then,  toward 
night,  some  land  as  varying  as  an  ordinary  road  among,  but  not 
over,  mountains.  We  had  intended  to  sleep  at  El  Moral,  but 
we  started  too  late. 

A  little  before  dark  we  reached  Las  Tapias.  This  consists 
of  a  house  and  kitchen,  certainly  not  without  occupants,  but,  in 
the  confusion  of  peons  and  servants,  I  could  not  distinguish 
them.  The  baggage  was  behind.  Only  two  mats,  which  came 
on  a  led  horse,  gave  us  a  place  to  sit,  without  entering  the  dark, 
windowless  cabin.  We  had  nearly  lost  our  hopes  of  our  bag- 
gage when  it  arrived,  and  the  girls  set  about  getting  dinner. 
The  arrieros  erected  a  tent  over  a  huge  pile  of  trunks  and  pack- 


NIGHT  AT  TAPIAS.  357 

ages.  These  tents  are  generally  erected  in  the  centre  of  the 
road,  or,  rather,  the  narrow  road  is  in  the  centre  of  the  tent. 
The  tent-poles  are  sought  on  the  spot.  The  cloth  of  the  tent 
is  the  property  of  the  gentleman,  who  is  the  chief  of  our  party 
by  all  consideration,  as  he  is  husband  of  one  of  the  ladies.  The 
other  is  an  unmarried  sister  of  his  wife.  I  call  him  Sefior. 

At  10  a  mat  had  been  spread  in  the  house,  a  table-cloth 
spread  on  it,  and  a  comfortless,  ill-prepared  dinner  was  season- 
ed with  cheerfulness,  kindness,  and  hunger  into  a  real  feast.  I 
had,  however,  one  ground  of  complaint  that  none  but  the  serv- 
ants could  remedy,  and  they  would  not.  Besides  paying  my 
scot — escote — for  the  marketing,  I  had  bought  an  extra  supply 
of  chocolate  of  my  own ;  but  the  guarichas  would  always  make 
me  wait  till  the  last  for  my  chocolate,  and  then  add  water  to  it, 
so  that,  though  I  imbibed  more  fluid,  I  received  no  more  nour- 
ishment. I  found  all  contention  on  this  point  useless. 

Supper  over,  an  enormous  almofrez  was  produced :  out  of  it 
came  a  good  bed,  as  large  as  a  double  bed  ought  to  be,  to- 
gether with  a  mattress,  hammocks,  blankets,  night-shirts,  and 
dresses,  an  infinity  of  articles.  Three  hammocks  were  hung ; 
a  gentleman  placed  his  bed  under  the  three,  at  right  angles  with 
them,  so  that  if  any  cord  broke,  he  might  be  sure  to  share  in 
the  misfortune.  The  mattress  was  placed  on  a  wide  wooden 
bench  made  to  sleep  on,  and  the  large  bed  occupied  the  place 
of  our  table  on  the  floor. 

At  4  we  rose,  stowed  all  the  bedding  into  the  Trojan  horse, 
that  seemed  always  to  have  room  for  more,  and,  with  the  addi- 
tion of  my  bed,  was  no  fuller  than  before.  The  combined  in- 
dustry of  four  girls  got  us  a  breakfast  about  7,  and,  after  much 
delay,  we  started  long  before  the  mules  were  ready.  We  de- 
scended still  more,  to  a  stream,  a  tributary  of  the  Coello,  which, 
I  think,  was  in  sight  on  our  left.  Then  we  rose  to  El  Moral. 
This  is  but  a  single  house,  though  marked  on  the  maps. 

From  here  was  another  uninterrupted  ascent  for  some  hours. 
In  this  time  I  had  left  all  my  company  behind,  and  had  passed 
Buenavista  and  an  interesting  spot  called  Azufral.  Unfortu- 
nately, I  had  no  notice  of  it  till  too  late.  It  is  an  excavation 
for  extracting  sulphur.  The  altitude  is  given  at  6470  feet,  and 
the  temperature  is  estimated  at  61°,  while  in  the  excavations  the 


358  NEW  GRANADA. 

thermometer  rises  to  118°,  according  to  Humboldt.  No  man 
can  breathe  there,  for  the  air  is  95  per  cent,  carbonic  acid,  and 
2  per  cent,  of  the  remainder  is  hydrosulphuric  acid.  Of  course, 
such  galleries  can  be  carried  to  no  depth. 

Near  this  spot  is  a  contadero,  or  clear  plot,  the  highest  spot 
of  the  day's  journey,  that  bears  the  name  of  Agua  Caliente — 
hot  water — from  a  hot  spring  near  there.  The  spot  may  be 
said  to  be  at  the  base  of  Tolima.  I  have  not  been  able  to  hunt 
up  the  spring  itself,  which  is,  however,  some  little  distance  from 
the  road.  Had  preceding  travelers  mentioned  the  spring  and 
the  Azufral,  I  should  probably  have  seen  both,  for  I  was  far  in- 
deed ahead  of  my  party. 

I  employed  part  of  this  leisure  in  a  way  that  makes  me  shud- 
der as  I  write.  I  found  a  little  palm  between  10  and  20  feet  in 
height  and  nearly  3  inches  in  diameter.  It  is  quite  abundant 
about  here.  I  wished  to  bring  down  one  to  examine  the  fruit. 
I  cut  upon  it,  at  a  convenient  height,  with  my  heavy  machete, 
slanting  downward,  till  the  sharpened  end  of  the  trunk  sudden- 
ly slid  off  the  stump,  and,  impelled  by  the  weight  of  its  fruit, 
entered  the  ground  like  a  crowbar.  Its  weight  was  very  great, 
and  it  struck  close  to  my  foot,  that  was  protected  only  by  an 
alpargate  !  Had  the  position  of  my  foot  been  a  little  different, 
it  would  have  been  pinned  to  the  ground. 

In  these  altitudes  I  was  surprised  with  rain.  I  preferred 
rather  to  be  wet  than  to  turn  back  for  my  encauchado,  so  I 
walked  on. 

Now  I  was  descending.  The  road  was  wet,  but  stony,  for 
the  formation  seems  to  be  different  here  from  other  parts  of  the 
road.  If,  indeed,  it  be  trachyte,  I  found  little  to  indicate  it. 
The  descent  was  steep,  and  at  length  continuous. 

My  breakfast  had  been  very  slight,  and  my  dinner  last  night 
had  not  left  a  surplus  in  my  animal  treasury,  and  before  reach- 
ing the  summit  my  appetite  became  clamorous.  Its  appeals 
were  useless.  I  had  passed  but  one  house,  Buenavista,  since 
passing  El  Moral,  and  I  had  nothing  to  expect  short  of  Toche, 
the  present  locality  of  the  presidio,  which  lay  in  a  valley  far  be- 
neath me. 

The  road  presented  a  solitude  unequaled  by  any  thing  I  had 
ever  seen  on  a  traveled  road,  if,  indeed,  that  can  be  called  soli- 


THEKMAL   SPEINGS.  359 

tude  which  is  filled  with  the  voices  of  birds.  Among  the  rest 
were  turkeys,  and  a  beautiful  toucan  of  a  brilliant  green.  The 
cry  of  one  species  of  this  bird  is  rendered  by  "Dios  te  vef1 — 
"  God  sees  thee !"  I  picked  up  the  cast  skin  of  a  snake  on  the 
way. 

At  length  my  eyes  were  greeted  by  smoke  that  gracefully 
curled,  but  not  around  green  elms.  I  hastened  down  the  steep 
hills,  slippery  with  the  rain,  and  reached  a  roaring  river  (the  Co- 
ello)  at  the  bottom,  where  was  a  fire,  but  neither  house  nor  hu- 
man being.  The  road  ran  up  the  left  bank  of  the  river  till  it 
came  to  a  place  where  a  land-slide  had  carried  it  into  the  river. 
The  remedy  for  this  was  new,  beautiful,  singular,  and  original. 
A  Yankee  would  have  built  a  water-wall  to  confine  the  river  to 
its  place,  and  taken  earth  from  the  steep  hill  to  fill  in.  To  fa- 
vor this  plan,  the  river  is  full  of  boulders  here  of  all  sizes,  while 
elsewhere  no  rock  is  to  be  had.  Instead  of  this,  the  engineer 
made  a  zigzag  up  a  hill  that  we  would  regard  as  all  but  imprac- 
ticable. This  road  ascended  half  or  two  thirds  the  height  of 
West  Hoboken  Hill,  and  then,  without  a  yard  of  level  ground, 
it  descended  again  to  the  level  of  the  river.  It  was  broad  and 
beautifully  cut,  as  in  a  pleasure-ground,  but,  unfortunately,  will 
soon  be  destroyed  by  the  weather.  And  this  is  the  most  im- 
portant change  in  the  site  of  the  road  that  has  been  made,  per- 
haps, for  two  centuries ! 

Just  as  I  began  to  climb  the  hill,  I  met  a  beggar  with  a  knife 
in  his  belt.  To  enforce  his  claim,  he  informed  me  that  he  was 
a  presidario.  Had  he  assured  me  that  he  had  murdered  his 
mother  I  could  have  given  him  nothing — my  money  was  behind. 
At  the  very  foot  of  this  descent,  two  rods  from  the  road  and  ten 
feet  from  the  river,  is  a  small  mound  occupied  by  a  hot  spring. 
Any  traveler  will  readily  find  it  by  this  description.  It  appear- 
ed to  be  throwing  up  an  enormous  quantity  of  water,  which,  had 
I  been  in  a  hurry,  I  should  describe  as  passing  off  by  a  subter- 
ranean channel.  In  fact,  I  believe  it  threw  out  no  more  water 
than  could  have  been  dipped  out  with  a  coffee-cup,  but  with  it 
an  immense  quantity  of  carbonic  acid  gas,  and  that  with  much 
force.  The  spring  was  8  feet  long,  3£  wide,  and  6  feet  deep. 
I  got  in,  and  judged  its  specific  gravity  rather  greater  than  sea- 
water,  but  I  may  have  been  deceived  by  the  upward  tendency 


360  NEW  GRANADA. 

of  the  gas  discharged  beneath  me.  The  temperature  was  90°. 
The  mound  was  evidently  oxide  of  iron,  that  had  been  thrown 
off  by  the  spring,  as  is  also  some  salt  of  lime,  probably  carbon- 
ate, that  incrusts  twigs  around  there.  The  gas  that  came  off 
seemed  almost  entirely  carbonic  acid,  but  traces  of  sulphur  were 
noticeable.  The  gas  issued  evidently  from  that  end  of  the  ba- 
sin nearest  the  river,  and  it  bore  the  body  of  the  bather  percep- 
tibly toward  the  other  end. 

On  the  right  hand  (north)  of  the  road,  20  or  30  rods  up 
stream,  was  a  smaller  spring,  6  inches  in  diameter  and  6  feet 
deep.  Little  gas  escaped.  Less  exposed  to  the  air,  its  temper- 
ature should  be  higher.  I  made  it  91°.  That  at  Agua  Cali- 
cnte  is  said  to  be  far  greater. 

I  had  still  nearly  a  mile  to  walk  up  the  river  over  a  very 
wet  plain,  which,  but  for  the  drains,  would  deserve  the  name 
of  swamp.  In  the  ditches  here  I  saw  the  first  and  only  con- 
ferva I  have  seen  in  the  country.  Near  the  upper  end  I  saw  a 
field  fenced  in,  which,  however,  appeared  not  yet  to  be  'ready 
for  cultivation.  Then  I  crossed  the  Coello  on  a  covered  bridge 
just  above  the  mouth  of  the  Tochecito.  In  the  fork  of  the  two 
rivers  is  a  dry  plain,  covered  thickly  with  large  boulders,  so  as 
to  be  difficult  to  ride  over.  Here  stands  Toche. 

I  arrived  about  12,  and  my  first  idea  was  to  supply  the  de- 
ficiencies of  my  breakfast.  I  called  for  bread,  butter,  chocolate, 
trait,  guarapo,  and  eggs,  but  could  only  obtain  the  latter,  and 
at  the  rate  of  eight  for  a  dime.  I  ordered  four  eggs  boiled,  and, 
by  the  time  they  were  done,  they  had  found  two  bits  of  dry 
bread.  A  board  in  a  corner  served  for  a  table,  the  handle  of 
a  spoon  for  a  spoon,  a  chair  turned  down  for  a  seat.  While 
eating,  they  assured  me  that  the  officers  here  used  panela  and 
water  for  chocolate,  and  liked  it.  They  could  furnish  me  the 
same,  and  I  tried  it. 

Before  2  our  party  began  to  come  in,  but  all  the  beasts 
were  not  in  till  about  3.  It  was  decided  that  we  could  not  go 
on  to  Gallego ;  this  gave  us  a  dinner  by  day,  and  afforded  me 
an  opportunity  to  observe  the  community  in  which  we  were 
to  spend  the  night.  Toche,  I  think,  was  one  house  before  the 
presidio  was  stationed  here.  That  has  been  enlarged,  two  oth- 
ers put  up,  and  a  dozen  little  huts.  The  huts  are  for  men  on 


PRESIDIO.  361 

parole.  They  are  called  francos,  and  are  not,  like  the  guarda-» 
dos,  kept  all  the  time  within  shot.  The  franco  that  I  met  to-* 
day  was  a  messenger  that  had  been  dispatched  to  Ibague.  It 
is  unwise  for  them  to  try  to  run  away,  but  they  often  do. 

At  night  the  presidarios  were  marched  down  the  zigzag  that 
we  have  to  climb  to-morrow.  They  were  drawn  up  in  a  line, 
the  roll  called,  and  their  rations  given  them.  These  are  meal,  or 
maize,  or  rice,  and  salt,  and  an  immensity  of  panela,  a  quarter  of 
'  a  pound  per  diem.  Most  of  the  prisoners  are  on  parole,  and  sleep 
in  the  huts ;  the  others  are  thrust  into  one  of  the  houses,  and 
kept  under  guard.  There  are  twenty-five  soldiers,  more  or  less. 
One  of  them  marched  a  prisoner  up  to  us  who  wished  to  beg. 
He  had  the  additional  merit  of  a  large  chain  from  his  waist  to 
his  ankle,  showing  him  to  be  one  of  the  worst  of  the  presidio. 
Even  this  did  not  avail  him :  we  left  him  to  the  mercy  of  the 
President,  whose  only  pardons  seem  to  have  been  of  prisoners 
who  had  risked  their  lives  in  the  service  of  cholera  hospitals  on 
the  Isthmus. 

Altogether,  the  prisoners  are  well  treated  here,  and,  to  a  poor 
man;  it  is  worse  to  wait  his  trial  a  week  in  Bogota  or  Ibague 
than  to  serve  a  month  here ;  and  to  any  man,  a  week  here  is 
better  than  to  wait  his  trial  a  single  night  in  the  prison  (stocks) 
of  Pandi. 

We  were  here  the  guests  of  the  warden,  to  whom  all  the  gen- 
tlemen of  the  party  were  personally  known  except  myself.  He 
gave  up  to  us  his  entire  apartment,  quartering  himself  for  the 
night  abroad. 

In  arrangements  for  the  night,  I  saw  a  specimen  of  that  dis- 
regard of  the  comfort  of  others  that  even  personal  friends  are 
said  to  be  liable  to  show  in  traveling.  The  instance  was  slight 
— the  premature  seizing  on  a  sleeping-place  by  the  youngest 
LL.D.  It  only  merits  mention  from  the  extreme  rarity  of  the 
occurrence.  For  myself,  I  had  an  excellent  night's  rest  in  my 
hammock  in.  the  surgeon's  room. 

I  had  looked  up  from  Toche  to  the  road  above  with  amaze- 
ment, and  an  incredulity  that  would  not  believe  my  eyes.  It 
appeared  rather  to  be  a  work  of  fortification  than  a  road.  Zig- 
zags, as  steep  as  an  armed  soldier  could  ascend  without  climb- 
ing, seemed  to  run  to  points  that  nearly  overhung  the  place 


362 


NEW   GKANADA. 


where  we  stood.  The  lines  and  turns  were  as  sharp  as  if 
carved  in  stone  or  built  of  brick.  But  no  one  could  think  it 
a  road,  for  it  aimed  evidently  at  the  highest  peaks,  and  not  at 
any  pass  that  a  road  should  seek. 

But  it  was  a  road,  and 
our  road.  Up  we  went, 
till,  in  three  or  four  miles, 
I  had  risen  more  than  in 
any  other  road  of  the  same ' 
length  in  my  life.  And 
up  there  a  new  wonder 
met  my  incredulous  eyes 
— two  flat  stones,  with 
inscriptions,  which  show 
that  this  road  is  more 
than  two  hundred  years 
old.  They  were  copied 
by  Senor  Raphael  Pom- 
bo,  who  kindly  executed 
for  me  the  annexed  draw- 
ings. I  read  the  first, 
"Por  aqui  paszo  (for 
paso)  Francisco  de  Pena- 
randa,  a  24  de  Agosto, 
1641."— Here  passed 
Francisco  de  Penaranda,  24th  August,  1641.  The  second  is 
broken,  and  I  can  not  satisfy  myself  of  the  surname ;  neither 
can  I  learn  what  member  of  the  ancient  and  noble  family  of  Pe- 
naranda was  here  at  that  day. 

Now  all  this  outrageous  ascent  is  unnecessary.  Our  day's 
journey  follows  up  the  Tochecito.  We  keep  mostly  far  above 
it,  but  probably  only  from  Spanish  or  Indian  aversion  to  roads 
on  side-hill.  And  yet  all  quingo  road  is  effectively  side-hill 
road,  for  on  one  side  is  bank,  and  on  the  other  steep  descent. 

I  stopped  to  see  some  presidarios  work,  and  to  talk  with  the 
officer  of  the  guard,  when  a  new  sight  met  my  eyes :  for  the 
first  time  I  saw  one  human  being  bearing  another  as  a  beast 
of  burden.  We  were  at  the  end  of  the  labors  of  the  presidio, 
and  in  advance  were  bad  portions  of  road  that  the  two  ladies 


INSCRIPTIONS  ON  STONES  .NEAR  TOCHE. 


364 


NEW  GRANADA. 


f       IP 


SILLEROS.  365 

were  thus  to  pass.  The  accompanying  sketch  represents  rath- 
er scenery  of  the  next  day  in  the  first  great  descent  toward  the 
valley  of  the  Cauca,  but  it  here  serves  to  illustrate  what  I  have 
now  to  describe. 

The  sillero  is  not  an  extremely  athletic  man.  He  is  nude 
from  the  waist  up,  and  his  pantaloons  are  rolled  up  at  the  bot- 
tom as  far  as  possible,  especially  in  muddy  weather.  A  rude 
chair  (silla)  of  guadua,  with  a  piece  of  white  cotton  cloth  put 
over  to  keep  off  such  rain  and  sun  as  it  may,  is  all  the  appara- 
tus. This  is  secured  to  the  sillero's  body  by  two  belts  cross- 
ing over  the  chest,  and  another  passing  over  the  forehead.  The 
rider  must  keep  absolutely  still.  If  the  sillero  slip  or  stumble, 
any  motion,  however  slight,  of  the  rider,  will  insure  a  fall.  It  is, 
therefore,  much  easier  to  ride  asleep  than  awake,  and  far  safer. 
At  the  time  I  saw  them  first,  the  way  was  so  terribly  steep  that 
I  could  not  but  think  that  a  Northern  lady  would  walk  to  rest 
her  horse.  There  is  sometimes  the  same  feeling  here.  A  lady 
told  me  that  she  refused  to  submit  to  it  at  first,  but  her  condi- 
tion forbade  all  idea  of  an  alternative,  and  when  compelled  to 
yield,  she  did  so  with  many  tears.  Colonel  Hamilton,  a  British 
minister,  arrived  in  Ibague  barefoot,  with  his  feet  bleeding,  ac- 
companied by  two  silleros,  whom  he  paid  liberally,  but  never 
used.  Our  two  ladies  took  it  more  naturally.  La  Senora  was 
already  asleep,  and  Senorita,  her  sister,  was  reading. 

A  prodigious  descent  and  a  slight  rise  brought  us  to  Gallego. 
We  had  hoped  to  pass  the  previous  night  there,  but  when  I  saw 
the  spot  I  was  glad  we  did  not.  It  was  an  open  tambo,  a  mere 
roof  set  on  posts,  without  a  particle  of  lateral  shelter,  or  one  el- 
ement of  comfort.  Gloomy  enough  was  the  scene,  for  it  was  an 
immense  wilderness  of  the  wax-palm  (Ceroxylon  andicola).  The 
tall  and  slender  stems  (represented  as  far  too  low  in  Humboldt's 
Nova  Generd)  were  rising  thick  in  every  direction.  The  cylin- 
drical trunks  were  from  12  to  15  inches  in  diameter,  as  straight 
as  the  shaft  of  a  column,  and  terminated  at  the  summit,  say  50 
feet  high,  by  a  tuft  of  huge  leaves.  The  trunk,  which,  like  all 
palms,  is  destitute  of  bark,  is  coated  with  a  considerable  film  of 
wax,  or,  rather,  it  is  believed,  resin.  It  might  be  made  a  profit- 
able business  to  collect  and  sell  this,  as  much  of  the  wax  used 
in  the  churches  is  imported,  and  sells  here  at  an  extravagant 
price,  nearly  $3  per  pound,  when  in  the  form  of  candles. 


366  NEW  GRANADA. 

In  nine  months  from  the  time  we  were  seated  there,  eating 
dulce  and  drinking  water,  the  scene  was  much  changed.  The 
presidio  had  been  there,  and  left  the  tambo  inclosed  with  walls, 
and  had  added  two  little  huts  and  a  shed.  A  man  was  still  liv- 
ing in  one  of  the  huts  when,  as  a  slow,  bitterly  cold  rain  made 
the  dismal  scene  tenfold  more  dismal,  at  nightfall,  wounded  and 
bleeding,  I  contrived  to  get  off  my  horse  at  the  tambo.  My  last 
meal  had  been  before  starting,  on  the  morning  of  the  day  before, 
though  chocolate  and  a  little  bread  had  sufficed  to  keep  me  alive. 
Of  even  this  support  I  was  partly  deprived,  for  that  morning  I 
had  incautiously  bitten  into  a  berry  so  intensely  nauseous  as  to 
cause  me  to  vomit  up  the  little  I  had  swallowed  an  hour  before. 
I  had  thought  it  to  be  Passiflorate,  but  it  proved  to  be  Cucurbi- 
tate. 

I  was  coming  from  the  west,  and,  just  before  reaching  the 
highest  point  of  the  Quindio,  a  shower  came  on.  I  mounted 
chiefly  to  keep  my  saddle  dry.  Both  hands  were  filled  with 
plants,  that  I  had  gathered  even  as  I  rode  along  in  the  rain,  and 
over  all  was  my  encauchado,  which  is  quite  an  impediment  in 
an  emergency.  I  was  mounted  on  a  rather  tall  and  awkward 
horse,  and  the  road  was  of  the  steepest.  The  rain  had  just 
ceased,  and  we  were  on  the  very  last  ascent.  In  ten  minutes 
we  were  to  leave  the  valley  of  the  Cauca,  when  my  horse  fell. 
It  was  not  necessary  for  me  to  dismount,  but  he  would  rise 
more  easily.  I  attempted  to  land  outside  the  path  in  a  tuft  of 
bushes,  but,  when  too  late,  saw  that  I  was  stepping  off  a  steep 
bank  into  the  top  of  a  thicket  of  shrubs. 

I  caught  at  the  saddle.  My  horse  was  rising.  I  pulled  him 
over.  For  an  instant  I  saw  the  huge  creature,  whose  feet  were 
uppermost,  directly  above  me.  How  I  was  not  crushed  under 
him  I  never  shall  know.  To  my  surprise,  I  saw  the  horse  roll 
down  below  me.  He  found  himself  in  the  road  again  where  he 
had  been  a  minute  before,  for  he  had  fallen  from  one  quingo  to 
the  next.  I  looked :  my  saddle  was  unbroken,  my  bag  of  oran- 
ges safe,  the  package  of  plants  that  I  carried  undamaged.  Only 
the  last  gathered  were  crushed,  and  them  I  abandoned.  I  climbed 
up  again,  and  then  found  a  wound  on  my  leg.  I  dared  not 
mount,  lest  I  should  faint  from  pain.  I  abandoned  my  encau- 
chado and  horse  to  a  servant,  and  walked  in  agony  for  half  an 


AN  ACCIDENT.  3(57 

hour.  This  was  about  noon,  and  now  at  night  I  stood  in  the 
rain  at  the  tambo  of  Gallego.  There  is  no  level  spot  here  large 
enough  to  hold  two  huts.  The  one  in  which  I  spent  the  night 
was  about  fifteen  feet  higher  than  the  tambo,  and  distant  about 
twenty  feet  horizontally.  The  steep  paths  were  full  of  slippery 
mud,  so  that  it  was  scarce  possible  to  walk  without  falling. 

Fortunately,  the  man  that  lived  in  this  solitude  had  killed  a 
black  bear,  and  sold  us  some  of  the  meat.  The  servants  had 
nothing  to  spoil  it  with,  and,  in  spite  of  the  pain  and  the  blood 
still  trickling  down  my  leg,  I  made  a  delicious  dinner  about  8. 
I  then,  with  great  difficulty,  got  some  water  to  wash  the  wound, 
tied  a  silk  handkerchief  on  it,  put  my  dearly-earned  plants  in 
paper,  slung  my  hammock,  and  by  10  I  was  asleep.  Eight- 
and-forty  hours  after  the  accident  I  was  in  Ibague7,  had  taken 
off  the  handkerchief,  procured  some  warm  water,  and  was  wash- 
ing the  bits  of  gravel  out  of  the  festering  wound.  Had  I  un- 
fortunately broken  a  thigh,  I  could  not  have  reached  assistance, 
either  by  advancing  or  receding,  in  less  than  a  week. 

But  this  was  all  in  the  future,  while  we  sat  on  the  ground  an 
hour  eating  marmalade  and  drinking  the  water,  so  deliciously 
cool  then  and  so  chilly  thereafter.  At  another  place,  a  conta- 
dero,  I  saw  a  monument  like  a  tomb-stone,  that  must  have  been 
brought  there  at  immense  cost,  on  which  I  could  read  but  one 
word,  the  revered  name  Cdldas.  It  turns  out  to  be  erected  in 
honor  of  a  mass  celebrated  there  by  Bishop  somebody  some 
centuries  since,  as  I  am  informed  by  a  Senor  Caldas,  whose 
name  suggested  to  me  the  lamented  Granadan  sage.  He  was 
waiting  here  to  rest,  and  inscribed  his  name  for  want  of  some- 
thing better  to  do. 

Farther  on  we  passed  an  abundance  of  fine  drinking-places, 
from  which  the  water  flowed  into  the  Tochecito,  on  our  left ;  then 
came  a  great  descent  to  the  river.  All  the  way  down  grows  a 
cucurbitate  vine  with  an  elastic  fruit.  At  length  we  are  down 
to  the  bottom,  and  I  feel  sure  that  up  to  this  point  a  road  from 
Toche  could  have  been  built  with  less  distance,  no  descent,  no 
blasting,  and  level  enough  for  carriages.  Probably  it  would  cost 
less  than  government  will  spend  on  the  road  during  this  visit 
of  the  presidio.  We  cross  to  the  right  bank  of  the  Tochecito, 
here  a  small  mill-stream,  and  commence  our  grand  ascent.  I 


368  NEW  GRANADA. 

relieved  the  tedium  of  the  way  by  translating  Longfellow's  Ex- 
celsior into  Spanish,  and  getting  explained  to  me  the  difference 
between  la  bandera — the  banner — and  lavandera — a  washer- 
woman— by  a  gentleman  who  knows  no  difference  between  the 
sound  of  b  and  v.  He  made  me  comprehend  by  the  time  he 
got  well  out  of  breath.  I  am  afraid  I  hardly  acted  fairly. 

Nearly  at  the  top  was  the  tambo  of  Yerba  Buena,  so  called 
from  an  abundance  of  peppermint — Mentha  piperita — that  grows 
there  and  in  many  other  places.  We  halted  early  at  Volcan- 
cito,  a  tambo  inclosed  by  upright  poles,  then  the  best  in  the 
whole  mountain.  The  roof  let  in  some  light,  the  walls  admit- 
ted the  wind  freely,  arid  the  floor  was  of  loose  dirt.  It  was 
early,  and  I  gloried  in  Volcancito,  gathering  Fuchsias  of  different 
species,  Begonias,  and  other  tropical  plants,  together  with  an 
Epilobium,  that  reminded  me  of  home. 

I  had  a  different  idea  of  the  climate  of  Volcancito  in  the  morn- 
ing. About  sunset  the  cold  began  to  sting  my  feet,  and  I  had 
to  change  my  alpargatas  for  stockings  and  slippers — my  only 
alternative,  for  we  open  no  trunks  this  week.  In  washing  my 
feet  I  found  water  too  cold  for  me,  for  the  first  time  in  South 
America.  I  immediately  began  to  dress  for  bed,  putting  on  first 
flannels  of  the  thickest  description,  then  a  night-shirt,  a  woolen 
hunting-shirt,  and  over  all  a  thick  hunting-coat.  I  risked  my 
nether  half,  in  which  the  blood  had  been  circulating  well  since 
leaving  Ibague,  in  a  pair  of  flannel  drawers  and  corduroy  pan- 
taloons. 

These  were  my  extraordinary  preparations.  I  began  my  or- 
dinary ones  soon  after  dinner.  I  had  studied  in  Ibague,  where 
they  have  cold  nights,  the  art  of  sleeping  warm  in  a  hammock, 
and,  as  it  is  not  understood  even  here,  I  will  communicate  it.  I 
took  my  two  thick  blankets  by  one  end,  holding  them  up  to- 
gether, and  lowered  them  to  a  mat  on  the  floor.  Then  I  laid  them 
across  the  foot  of  the  hammock,  and,  with  assistance  (for  it  was 
very  high),  threw  myself  into  it.  Next  I  drew  the  blankets  out 
of  their  folds  and  over  me  by  the  end  I  held  before.  Next  I 
brought  the  edges  of  the  blankets  within  the  hammock.  So  far 
every  body  knows,  but  as  yet  I  have  nothing  beneath  me  but  n 
thickness  of  cotton ;  my  rear  must  be  better  defended.  Here 
comes  my  secret.  I  draw  myself  up  from  the  centre  of  the  ham- 


NIGHT  AT  VOLCANCITO.  369 

mock,  where  I  am  to  sleep,  toward  the  head.  Then  I  put  the 
edges  of  the  blanket  beneath  me,  so  that  they  pass  each  other, 
beginning  at  the  feet  and  ending  at  the  shoulders,  where  the 
process  is  very  difficult,  but  is  aided  by  gradually  sliding  down 
the  hammock  to  the  point  of  equilibrium.  Now  only  remains 
the  delicate  task  of  placing  myself  diagonally  in  the  hammock, 
so  that  the  head  and  feet  are  less  elevated.  All  these  opera- 
tions, be  it  remembered,  are  to  be  performed  as  on  a  slack-rope. 

All  were  suffering  with  the  cold.  It  was  a  time  for  Mark 
Tapley  to  be  jolly  in.  I  called  on  Seiior  for  a  tale,  and  he  com- 
plied. He  told  one  which  gave  me  a  new  idea  of  a  language  in 
which  there  are  no  indecent  words,  or,  if  there  be,  it  is  past  any 
conjecture  what  they  would  represent.  Fortunately  for  me,  the 
character  of  all  the  parties  present  was  beyond  suspicion,  so  I 
was  only  surprised,  not  alarmed,  at  a  tale  that  in  England  would 
date  back  to  the  days  of  Charles  II. 

But  there  is  another  puzzle  about  that  tale,  either  ethnological 
or  psychological.  It  must  be  that  I  have  heard  a  variation  of 
it  before,  and  that  in  English,  and  before  I  was  ten  years  old. 
How  shall  I  ascertain  ?  Can  any  member  of  the  Percy  Society 
inform  me  if  there  is  a  tale  of  past  centuries  about  two  people 
spending  a  night  in  a  tree,  and  throwing  down  a  table,  or  a  door 
that  would  serve  for  one,  on  the  heads  of  some  robbers  that 
were  dividing  their  booty  below  ?  If  so,  childish  tales  have  an 
blder  date  and  a  wider  range  than  I  could  have  thought  possi- 
ble, and  this  foolish  one  must  be  known  all  over  Western  Eu- 
rope and  both  Americas. 

Unfortunately,  I  had  succeeded  too  well  with  my  hammock. 
A  generous  glow  at  length  pervaded  my  frame,  and  my  heart 
began  to  expand,  and  inquire  into  the  state  of  those  around  me. 
Seiiorita  was  very  cold,  and  had  no  prospect  of  sleeping  all  night. 
I  asked  myself,  "Can  I  spare  my  thinnest  blanket?"  My  ex- 
panded heart  answered,  "For  a  lady,  an  amiable  young  lady 
whom  I  esteem,  and  who  is  suffering  with  cold  more  intense  than 
ever  she  has  known,  I  can."  But  I  found  that,  like  the  last  feath- 
er that  broke  the  camel's  back,  this  blanket  was  necessary  to 
break  the  power  of  the  cold.  I  passed  a  sleepless  night.  I  tried 
a  new  manoeuvre ;  I  put  myself  on  my  right  side,  on  the  right 
edge  of  the  hammock,  bringing  the  rest  over  me  for  a  cover. 

AA 


370  NEW  GRANADA. 

Thus  I  resembled  a  huge  follicle,  or,  zoologically  speaking,  a  bi- 
valve, holding  my  shell  shut  with  my  hands,  a  knee,  and  my 
head,  which  rested  on  the  inflexed  edge  of  my  upper  valve.  This 
failed,  and,  when  too  late  to  sleep,  I  added  my  blanket  and  ham- 
mock to  the  covering  of  one  of  the  cold  would-be  sleepers  on  the 
floor,  and  crawled  in  by  his  side  to  thaw. 

In  the  morning  I  found  Senorita's  shawl  on  the  bed  of  the 
young  LL.D.,  that  lay  at  the  foot  of  hers.  She  too  had  a  heart, 
and,  in  a  moment  when  her  left  hand  knew  not  what  her  right 
hand  did,  she  had  lent  it  before  she  received  my  blanket.  A 
hearty  laugh  followed  this  discovery,  and  to  this  day  the  men- 
tion of  Volcancito  seems  to  make  a  peculiar  impression  on  the 
young  lady. 

Short  and  unsatisfactory  was  the  breakfast  we  made  before 
leaving  Volcancito.  We  were  near  the  edge  of  the  Paramo,  and 
even  here  the  ground  is  sometimes  covered  with  snow  for  near- 
ly a  week  at  once.  A  peculiar  visitation  sometimes  overtakes 
the  traveler  at  these  altitudes.  Without  suffering  intensely  with 
the  cold,  he  suddenly  loses  his  strength,  then  his  life.  This  is 
emparamarse,  an  occurrence  that  had  nearly  proved  fatal  to  one 
of  my  friends,  and  which  I  have  had  occasion  once  or  twice  to 
guard  against.  But  now  we  had  nothing  to  fear,  and  I  even  re- 
sumed my  scant  walking-dress,  and  had  a  delightful  day.  We 
crossed  an  abundance  of  cool  streams,  all  flowing  to  our  left. 
On  the  banks  of  one  of  them  I  found  a  magnificent  Equisetum, 
5  or  6  feet  high.  I  lost  it  by  trusting  to  the  assurance  that 
others  as  large  could  be  found  in  the  plains  of  the  Cauca,  and 
from  the  great  difficulty  of  saving  specimens  on  this  solitary 
road.  We  reached  in  an  hour  or  two  the  dividing  ridge,  and 
kept  it  for  some  time. 

Here  the  road  became  bad  as  we  descended,  though  nothing  in 
comparison  to  those  frightful  semi-subterranean  ditches  through 
which  Cochran  rode  and  the  fat  Hamilton  walked  for  long  dis- 
tances, without  elevating  the  head  up  to  the  level  of  the  ground. 
These  trenches  (callejones)  sometimes  lay  along  our  road  like 
buffalo-traps  (mule-traps),  and  sometimes  opened  upon  it  like 
the  mouth  of  a  deserted  mine.  Had  either  of  these  travelers 
been  given  to  exaggeration,  they  would  not  have  attempted  it  in 
describing  these  callejones. 


BOQUfA.  371 

This  was  the  scene  of  my  catastrophe  on  a  later  trip.  Here 
too  is  laid  the  scene  of  a  tale,  that  well  may  be  true,  of  a  Spanish 
official  who,  having  a  right  to  compel  the  service  of  unpaid  sil- 
leros,  rode  one  with  a  pair  of  those  horrid  mule  spurs.  The 
poor  Indian,  goaded  past  endurance,  threw  his  brute  of  a  rider 
down  a  steep,  where  he  was  killed  by  the  fall,  and  then  fled  to 
the  woods  and  never  returned. 

The  ladies,  who  had  been  in  their  chairs  only  a  little  in  the 
latter  part  of  the  steep  ascent  from  Toche,  now  took  them  for  a 
good  part  of  the  day.  Seiiora  slept,  Senorita  read,  and  the  sillero 
went  on  as  if  his  chair  was  empty.  None  seemed  to  feel  that 
there  were  any  necks  at  stake.* 

At  2  we  reached  Barcinal,  the  first  house  since  leaving 
Toche,  the  sixth  in  seventy-two  hours.  Here  was  a  family  of 
Antioquenos,  who  supplied  us  with  masamorra,  made  of  cracked 
maize,  boiled  and  eaten  with  milk.  This  is  a  favorite  dish  in 
that  secluded  province.  I  like  the  Antioquenos  and  the  Antio- 
quenas,  and  I  like  their  caps,  but  I  think  I  should  not  like  the 
too  frequent  recurrence  of  masamorra. 

Between  Barcinal  and  Toche  there  is  no  good  place  to  pass 
the  night,  and  yet  they  are  more  than  a  day's  journey  apart. 
The  best  remedy  is  a  better  road,  and  one  could  be  made  that 
would  bring  one  through  even  in  bad  weather.  Had  we  proceed- 
ed to  Gallego  the  second  night,  we  might  have  reached  Barcinal 
on  the  following,  and  saved  the  martyrdom  of  Volcancito, 

A  steep,  rough  road  led  from  Barcinal  down  to  Boquia,  on 
the  banks  of  the  Quindio.  Boquia  is  the  head  of  a  district  in 
the  province  of  Cauca.  It  has  some  tolerable  houses,  a  good 
posada,  the  beginnings  of  a  church,  a  wheat-mill  that  I  saw  in 
actual  operation,  and  a  covered  bridge  over  a  branch  of  the  Quin- 
dio. Provisions  might  sometimes  be  bought  here. 

After  fording  the  Quindio,  quite  a  large  mill-stream,  nearly 
two  feet  deep,  we  found  a  broad  and  beautiful  ascent,  followed 
by  another  that  put  the  ladies  in  their  chairs,  and  brought  us  to 
El  Roble  (The  Oak).  We  stopped  here  early,  and  just  in  sea- 
son to  avoid  a  brisk  shower,  which  surprised  the  arrieros  before 
their  tent  was  completed.  El  Roble  is  not  so  high  as  Volcan- 
cito. We  passed  the  night  more  like  Christians,  eating  at  a 
table,  sleeping  in  a  house,  and  Senorita  even  had  a  bed-room 


372  NEW  GRANADA. 

to  herself  nominally,  but  she  could  not  be  secure  from  intru- 
sion. 

We  left  El  Roble  on  Friday  morning.  A  gentle  descent  of 
about  three  miles  brought  us  to  another  Antioqueno  family,  at 
Portachuela,  a  pleasant  place  to  stop.  Here  I  found  out  what 
arrepas  are,  and  discover  that  I  have  avoided  them  in  New 
England  under  the  name  of  Johnny-cake,  and  in  Illinois  as  hoe- 
cake,  pone,  and  corn-dodgers. 

We  stopped  again  at  a  contadero,  called  Lagunetas,  and  dis- 
patched peons  to  bring  us  drink.  I  suppose  that,  as  the  name 
implies,  they  found  it  in  "mud-holes,"  or  "little  ponds."  In 
going  west,  it  is  well  to  drink  here,  or  to  carry  on  water  from 
Portachuela. 

From  here  on  I  found  the  roads  slippery  with  rain,  and  almo- 
hadillado,  i.  e.,  full  of  "mule-ladders,"  between  the  rounds  of 
which  the  animal  puts  his  feet  into  a  deep  mud-hole.  I  put  my 
feet  there  too  by  misfortune,  and  one  time  my  knee,  to  the  no 
small  detriment  of  my  personal  appearance.  I  soon  lost  sight 
of  my  company.  I  found  no  water  to  drink  all  day,  but  found  a 
drink  of  milk  on  the  way.  Here  I  was  overtaken  by  a  man  go- 
ing from  Boquia  to  Cartago  in  a  day  and  a  half;  for  us  it  is 
more  than  two  days,  if  not  three.  He  had  a  corner  of  his  ruana 
pinned  up  into  a  pocket,  from  which  projected  the  head  of  a  live 
chicken,  a  present  to  a  lady  in  Cartago. 

About  2  I  arrived  at  La  Balsa  (The  Raft).  I  had  promised 
myself  a  good  swim  in  the  river,  but  found  there  was  no  river 
here.  I  am  totally  at  a  loss  for  the  origin  of  the  name.  I  scarce- 
ly found  water  enough  to  wash  the  mud  off  my  feet.  Here  I 
waited  an  hour  or  two  for  the  company,  and  when  they  arrived 
it  was  decided  to  go  no  further. 

La  Balsa  is  the  first  place  that  deserves  a  name  since  leav- 
ing Ibague.  The  population  of  the  district  is  stated  at  199,  and 
that  of  Boquia  198,  but  both  are  scattered  over  more  than  100 
square  miles  each.  I  know  of  no  reason  for  a  town  here,  but  it 
is  very  convenient  to  us.  I  now  made  a  grand  discovery,  and 
that  was  that  I  liked  plantains  cooked.  So  rarely  are  they  cook- 
ed really  ripe,  that  I  knew  not  the  taste  of  a  ripe  one.  Here  is 
the  first  place  that  I  have  seen  them  abundant.  They  take 
them  to  Cartago  to  sell.  A  large  raceme  of  green  ones  was 
given  to  one  of  the  led  horses  for  his  dinner. 


LA  BALSA.  373 

Here  we  dined  on  the  floor,  and,  in  consequence  of  a  rain  com- 
ing on  just  after  we  stopped,  I  got  no  plants.  We  made  the 
acquaintance,  more  lasting  than  profitable,  with  the  zancudo, 
which  I  found,  on  examination,  is  no  more  nor  less  than  the 
musquito.  In  all  my  trip  from  Honda  here  I  do  not  know 
that  I  have  seen  any,  and  here  they  were  so  few  that  I  only 
heard  one  or  two. 

Saturday  morning  found  me  a  little  anxious  about  the  end  of 
our  journey,  especially  as  it  had  begun  to  rain.  I  put  on  my 
encauchado,  and,  though  I  could  have  had  a  horse  the  whole 
day,  kept  my  feet.  Senora's  sillero  could  not  do  as  much ;  he 
spilled  his  precious  charge  four  times  in  the  morning.  I  hap- 
pened to  be  talking  with  her  at  the  time  of  the  first  fall,  and 
continued  with  her  till  she  again  took  the  saddle. 

One  comical  picture  might  have  been  witnessed  had  there 
only  been  a  spectator  to  laugh.  The  chair  was  broken,  and  must 
be  mended.  He  stood  his  burden  upon  a  huge  log,  three  feet 
in  diameter.  It  must  be  sheltered,  and  the  only  possible  shel- 
ter was  one  end  of  my  encauchado,  but  it  served  well  its  pur- 
pose. 

The  Senorita,  more  fortunate,  had  not  a  fall  in  crossing  the 
mountain.  I  saw  one  place  where  the  foot  of  her  sillero  had 
slipped  a  yard ;  but  she  is  less  timorous  than  her  sister,  and 
seems  to  have  kept  from  starting.  Two  silleros  fell  with  the 
Senora. 

At  Piedra  de  Moler,  which  signifies  either  grindstone  or  mill- 
stone, is  a  ferry  across  the  La  Vieja,  into  which  the  Quindio 
empties  some  way  above.  Here  we  paid  a  peaje  or  tax  of  80 
cents  each  to  the  province  of  Cauca.  It  can  not  be  called 
toll,  for  it  is  not  expended  on  the  highways.  With  the  excep- 
tion of  a  little  piece  of  territory  that  lies  west  of  the  Cauca, 
where  a  road  that  runs  up  and  down  the  river  may  belong  to 
the  province,  all  the  road  in  the  province  is  national,  but  it  is 
very  rare  for  either  nation  or  province  to  spend  any  thing  on  it. 
I  recollect  in  the  space  of  nine  months  only  the  building  of  a 
single  foot-bridge,  and  am  sure  I  have  seen  no  other  labor  or 
money  expended  on  the  highway. 

This  time  we  did  not  allow  the  ferry  to  delay  us  much.  We 
stopped  to  see  the  beasts  swim  across — an  interesting  sight — 


374  NEW  GRANADA. 

went  to  the  ferryman's  house  to  eat  some  eggs  and  roasted  plan- 
tains, and  came  on,  leaving  our  baggage  to  follow  in  two  de- 
tachments. 

The  rain  had  ceased,  but  threatened,  so  that  I  thought  pru- 
dent to  retain  my  defenses.  An  immense  hill  only  remained  to 
ascend  and  descend,  for  Cartago  is  on  the  bank  of  the  river  we 
passed. 

Ascending  the  hill,  I  saw  the  Bihai  (Heliconia  Bihai),  a  Can- 
nate  herb,  that  supplied  leaves  for  shelter  to  travelers  before  tam- 
bos  were  built.  The  leaves  are  of  that  characteristic  Scitamin- 
ate  form  shown  in  our  gardens  by  the  Indian-shot  (Canna),  and 
in  pictures  by  those  of  the  plantain  and  banana.  They  are 
from  one  to  two  feet  long,  whitish  beneath,  and  are  hung  by  a 
notch  in  the  petiole  to  horizontal  strings  passing  over  the  poles 
that  make  the  roof  of  a  rancho.  Each  peon  and  carguero  was 
bound  to  carry  his  quota  of  these  from  this  place  going  east- 
ward, and  the  traveler  might  have  to  sleep  nearly  a  fortnight 
under  a  thatch  thus  transported. 

From  the  top  we  had  the  first  good  view  of  the  Valley  of 
the  Cauca.  It  was  not  level,  but  rolling,  as  they  say  at  the 
West.  Its  vivid  green  contrasted  beautifully  with  the  dry 
plains  of  Ibague  and  Espinal.  I  can  scarcely  believe  that  there 
can  be  a  more  beautiful  scene  than  that  where  the  plain  breaks 
in  upon  the  view.  Around  you  still  is  the  rugged  scenery  of 
the  mountain,  while  in  the  blue  distance  are  the  Caldas  mount- 
ains, which  I  fear  I  shall  never  cross.  It  would  be  more  beau- 
tiful still  were  the  Cauca  visible ;  but,  as  its  right  bank  is  lined 
with  uninterrupted  swamp  and  forest,  it  is  not  to  be  seen  but  by 
penetrating  to  it.  We  had  obtained  a  single  glimpse  of  the 
valley  the  day  before,  not  long  after  leaving  Lagunetas,  but  it 
was  only  through  a  narrow  opening  of  the  trees. 

Soon  after  coming  in  full  sight  of  the  plain  the  duties  of  the 
silleros  ceased.  At  the  first  pool  below,  they  put  themselves  in 
their  best  trim  to  make  their  appearance  in  Cartago.  Camisas 
were  drawn  forth  from  some  safe  storage,  and  hats  and  ruanas, 
added  to  the  simple  costume  of  the  mountains,  made  them  into 
ordinary  peasants. 

At  length  we  reached  the  plain,  but  when  we  made  the  change 
from  primitive  formation  to  the  alluvial  I  can  not  tell.  I  doubt 


ARRIVAL  AT  CARTAGO.  375 

even  if  the  line  is  capable  of  being  determined,  so  strongly  do  the 
soils  of  the  two  resemble  each  other. 

The  expense  of  the  trip  I  can  not  tell  exactly.  The  cost  of 
beasts  was  52  dimes  each,  including  peon  service ;  the  subsist- 
ence may  have  been  half  that  sum,  but  we  kept  no  separate  ac- 
counts. Our  expenses  will  be  found  rather  below  the  average 
cost  of  crossing  the  Quindio,  unless  the  losses  from  petty  thefts 
are  to  be  reckoned  in.  My  chief  loss  was  a  hatchet  having  two 
chisels  deposited  in  a  cavity  of  the  handle,  a  towel  (not  that 
crash  one),  and,  of  course,  as  much  rope  as  they  could  easily  lay 
their  hands  on. 

We  arrived  in  good  season  on  Saturday,  but  our  baggage  did 
not  get  in  till  too  late  for  mass  the  next  day.  Cartago  is  a  town 
of  about  the  size  of  Ibague,  but  much  lower  and  warmer.  But 
still  I  suffered  little  with  the  heat  here  or  with  the  cold  there. 
For  a  man  who  is  under  the  necessity  of  corporal  labor  in  the 
sun,  the  climate  of  Ibague  is  much  to  be  preferred  to  that  of 
this  part  of  the  Valley  of  the  Cauca.  My  lowest  altitude  in  the 
valley  has  been  2880  feet,  and  the  highest  temperature  in  the 
shade  was  85°,  at  La  Paila,  llth  June,  1853,  at  4  P.M.  Even 
this  is  tolerable.  The  hottest  I  have  seen  in  the  sun  was  127°. 
This  I  have  seen  exceeded  in  New  York  city.  For  the  rest, 
my  observations  in  the  valley  may  be  seen  in  the  Appendix. 

Cartago  has  much  more  of  tile  and  less  of  thatch  than  Ibague. 
The  place  is  old,  but  not  entirely  finished,  for  I  saw  one  house 
of  tapias  still  going  up.  They  put  together  a  frame,  with  sides 
of  strong  plank,  shovel  in  earth,  and  beat  it  down.  Bars  that 
hold  the  frame  together  leave  holes  through  the  wall,  but  these 
can  be  stopped.  The  work  is  rather  slow,  but  as  no  frost  ever 
attacks  these  walls,  they  are  as  good  as  brick,  and  in  an  earth- 
quake even  better.  By  whitewashing  occasionally,  they  are  as 
beautiful  at  a  distance  as  marble,  and  much  cheaper. 

I  searched  the  churches  for  any  thing  of  note,  and  found  only 
a  Saint  George — San  Jorje  (pronounced  hoar-hay) — mounted 
over  one  of  the  altars,  with  his  dragon  beneath  his  horse's  feet, 
of  course.  This  saint  is  rather  rare  in  this  country. 

Cartago  stands  on  the  La  Vieja,  but  opposite  the  town  is  a 
large  grassy  island,  with  a  small  and  safe  arm  on  this  side,  and 
a  stream  beyond  that  would  be  navigable  for  a  small  steam- 


376  NEW  GRANADA. 

boat.  It  is  two  or  three  miles  from  the  banks  of  the  Cauca, 
as,  indeed,  are  all  the  towns.  This  little  branch  is  a  favorite 
bathing-place,  and  Sunday  is  a  favorite  day,  so  I  found  the  lit- 
tle stream  swarming  with  all  ages,  both  sexes,  and  a  variety  of 
costumes  and  colors.  The  stream  was  now  so  high  that  a  girl 
of  twelve  or  fourteen  had  just  been  rescued  from  drowning,  they 
said.  I  saw  her  adjusting  her  hair  very  composedly,  and  the 
danger,  if  it  had  been  real,  seemed  to  have  made  no  impression. 

On  a  subsequent  day  I  visited  the  jail.  It  is  like  any  other 
house.  One  chap  was  making  pictures,  or  paintings,  he  called 
them,  of  such  a  desperate  character  that  I  think  he  ought  not 
to  be  turned  loose  without  formally  forswearing  the  brush — I 
will  not  say  pencil.  Another  held  undisturbed  possession  of 
the  front  sala  and  the  adjoining  bed-rooms.  His  windows 
opened  out  on  pleasant  balconies,  in  view  of  the  plaza  mayor. 
One  of  his  frequent  visitors  proposed  to  the  alcaide  to  put  a  lad- 
der up  to  one  of  the  balconies,  and  save  himself  the  trouble  of 
letting  him  in  and  out. 

The  girls'  school  seemed  to  be  in  a  remarkably  fine  condition. 
The  patio  was  full  of  flowers,  better  cultivated  than  any  where 
else  probably  in  the  whole  province.  The  children  seemed 
more  lively  and  cheerful  than  ordinary ;  the  result  of  zeal,  I 
think,  in  the  teacher,  who  seemed  more  than  usually  qualified 
for  the  task.  Give  her  books,  and  her  pupils  would  become 
ladies.  I  went  to  looking  over  their  reading-books,  and  found  one 
reading-lesson  of  so  singular  a  nature  that  I  could  not  resist 
my  desire  to  possess  it,  so  I  went  home  and  tore  in  two  a  num- 
ber of  EL  Dia,  a  Jesuit  newspaper.  I  selected  a  half  which 
had  a  long  string  of  verses,  beginning,  "  I,  the  President,  am  an 
Ass,  and  my  master,  Faction,  rides  me."  This  I  gave  her  for  a 
reading-lesson  in  exchange  for  hers,  which  was  a  small  election- 
eering hand-bill,  containing  all  the  names  of  the  candidates  of 
both  parties,  with  a  foot-note  to  each,  praising  those  of  one 
party,  and  bringing  scandalous  charges  against  the  others.  A 
picture  of  the  Goddess  of  Silence  in  the  room  is  the  work  of 
Senor  Santibanas,  one  of  the  best  native  artists  now  extant : 
small  praise,  I  allow. 

I  called  at  his  studio,  and  saw  there  some  clam-shells,  a  thing 
so  rare  that  I  have  known  no  others  in  all  New  Granada.  He 


BALLS  AND  PLAYS.  377 

directed  me  to  a  pond  where  I  found  two  species  alive.  The 
pond  had  no  outlet,  and  the  bottom  is  quite  muddy,  but  it  is 
still  resorted  to  for  bathing  by  some  who  do  not  like  the  brisk, 
clear  water  of  the  river.  One  of  these  species*  is  said  to  have 
been  also  picked  up  on  the  pebbly  banks  of  the  Paila  River,  30 
miles  south  of  here.  I  can  not  now  think  it  lived  there. 

I  attended  in  Cartago  the  best  ball  that  I  saw  in  all  the  coun- 
try. I  can  not  deny  that  it  was  dull,  but  the  participants  ap- 
peared quite  like  gentlemen  and  ladies.  Still,  there  was  a  re- 
straint and  stiffness  in  the  affair  that  we  do  not  see  in  our  best 
society  at  the  North,  and  which  I  should  not  expect  in  a  South- 
ern race.  One  event  of  the  evening  struck  me  too  strongly  to 
be  easily  forgotten.  A  young  gentleman  entered  the  room  about 
8,  radiant  with  smiles  of  satisfaction :  he  was  cordially  received, 
and  entered  into  the  dancing  with  great  spirit.  I  found  that  he 
had  lain  all  the  week  in  jail  for  debt.  It  was  only  since  dark 
that  he  had  gained  his  liberty,  and  he  did  not  seem  at  all  mor- 
tified at  the  occurrence. 

Imprisonment  is  abolished  for  debts  contracted  since  a  certain 
date,  but  the  old  laws  were  even  too  severe.  No  amount  of  se- 
curity would  suffice  to  liberate  the  debtor  against  the  will  of  the 
creditor — nothing  but  the  money.  The  creditor  is  to  allow  the 
prisoner  a  real  a  day  for  subsistence. 

They  had  just  had  a  grand  time  in  Cartago  before  my  arrival. 
The  Plaza  had  been  fenced  in  for  bulls.  The  favorite  game  of 
Horned  monkey  (Cachimona),  in  which  dice  are  used  and  coins 
change  owners,  had  disappointed  some  and  elated  others.  But 
the  only  thing  of  interest  that  I  lost  was  some  open  air  plays  on 
a  stage  of  guadiias,  that  was  still  standing  in  a  corner  of  a  pla- 
zuela,  in  an  angle  made  by  a  church  and  the  sacristia.  I  must 
content  myself  with  the  account  of  this  from  an  article  in  the 
"  Neo  Granadino"  by  an  eye-witness,  who  had  left  Cartago  just 
as  I  arrived : 

"  It  was  announced  as  something  extra  that  there  would  be 
two  plays  acted.  But  let  no  one  imagine  (although  it  might  be 
reasonably  expected)  that  they  were  to  be  minor  pieces,  farces 

*  Since  writing  the  above,  I  have  learned  that  by  Lea  this  shell  of  ambiguous 
habitat  has  been  named  Anodonta  Holtonis.  The  other  was  Mycetopus  sili- 
quoides. 


378  NEW  GRANADA. 

of  one  act,  or  comedies  adapted  to  the  taste  of  the  multitude,  for 
whom  the  dramatic  compliment  was  designed.  They  had  the 
knack  to  hit  upon  two  grand  dramatic  spectacles,  in  which  all 
the  performers,  even  to  the  prompter,  commit  suicide.  They 
abounded  in  places,  histories,  passions,  customs,  catastrophes, 
courts,  cardinals,  princes,  and  executioners,  whose  names  the 
amateur  performers  could  not  pronounce.  And  they  were  to  be 
acted  on  a  scaffold  erected  in  a  corner  of  a  public  square,  for  the 
benefit  of  all  those  who  could  afford  the  price  of  standing  bare- 
headed half  a  night  in  the  open  air. 

"  After  a  long  delay,  and  clamorous  calls  for  the  rising  of  the 
modest  cloth  that  played  the  part  of  curtain,  it  rose.  Then 
rose,  too,  the  laugh  of  the  spectators,  who  protested  and  resist- 
ed accepting  as  Lord  Chambeland,  Duque  de  Norfold,  and  Sir 
Grammer,  the  three  worthy  citizens  who  topsyturvically  (al- 
revesadamente)  pronounced  these  names,  and  applied  them  to 
each  other.  These  English  noblemen  were  dressed  in  the  mas- 
querade of  private  theatricals. 

"  But  the  uproar  reached  its  height  when  Henry  VIII.*  ap- 
peared. On  his  head  was  a  crown,  that  he  had  to  hold  with  one 
hand  lest  it  should  fall  when  he  moved.  His  dress,  modern  in 
the  extreme,  showed  that  the  capricious  monarch  was  very  pro- 
phetic in  the  matter  of  fashions.  He  spoke,  addressing  himself 
rather  to  the  masses  than  to  his  interlocutor.  He  told  of  Ed- 
ward, of  Malcolm,  of  William  the  Conqueror,  of  William  Rufus, 
of  Edgar,  of  his  successor  David,  father  of  Steven — of  the  Em- 
press Matilda,  of  Catharine  Howard,  and  of  other  names  and 
other  things,  all  well  known,  of  course,  both  in  the  theatres  of 
Paris  and  on  the  '  boards'  (guaduas)  of  Cartago. 

"Now  some  began  to  grow  desperate,  drowning  the  voice  of  the 
actors,  and  exciting  obstreperous  laughter  in  the  audience.  In 
one  of  the  most  pathetic  passages  they  shifted  a  scene,  or,  rather, 
the  cloth  that  served  for  one,  and  many  cried  out  at  once  that 
the  door  is  fawling—vp&  se  quee  la  puerta.  A  child  began  to 
cry,  and  from  more  than  one  voice  was  heard  the  rude  order  to 
give  that  baby  the  teat — (ubre,  notpecho).  Then  stones  began 

*  It  is  easy  to  foresee  that  the  Reformation  was  not  to  be  highly  exalted  in 
this  drama ;  but  the  Romish  Church  are  not  to  blame  for  making  the  most  the; 
can  out  of  old  Bluebeard. 


A  WORK  OF  FICTION.  379 

to  fly.  Dr.  Galindo  was  hit  near  us,  and  we  retired  well  pleased, 
you  may  guess,  with  the  atraso*  of  that  sovereign  mob,  who  ob- 
served so  much  decorum  and  quiet  in  the  presence  of  all  the  au- 
thorities, civil  and  military,  who  (I  had  forgotten  to  state  it) 
were  present." 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

A    CAUCAN    FAMILY. 

Scheme  for  Revealing  and  Concealing. — Introduction  to  the  Family. — House  in 
Cartago. — Bad  Ear-ache  and  Ball. — How  to  go  to  Bed. — Water-boys. — Fleas. 
— Horsemanship. — Using  a  Hacienda  as  an  Inn. — A  Peasant  Liar. — La  Ca- 
bana.— An  ugly  Hole  in  the  Dark. 

MY  good  reader,  I  am  going  to  take  you  into  my  confidence 
so  far  as  to  tell  you  what  I  have  been  doing  in  the  whole  day 
since  I  translated  the  paragraph  above.  I  have  made  out  a  key, 
changing  the  name  and  residence  of  nearly  every  person  that  I 
am  hereinafter  to  mention.  If  you  will  take  my  book  in  hand, 
and  come  into  the  Cauca  to  track  me  out,  you  will  find  every 
brook,  hill,  and  hole  as  I  am  now  to  lay  them  down.  So,  too, 
in  general,  as  to  the  houses,  the  descriptions  shall  be  very  exact, 
only  in  three  or  four  cases  I  may  move  them  for  special  reasons. 

But  the  characters  that  I  shall  draw  shall  be  as  faithful  as  I 
am  capable  of  making  them.  In  one  or  two  cases  a  conjecture 
shall  be  suppressed,  but  no  ascertained  fact  withholden  that 
would  throw  light  on  human  nature.  No  character  shall  be  a 
composition,  or  taken  from  two  or  more  individuals ;  and,  how- 
ever much  the  scene  of  an  occurrence  may  be  varied,  the  char- 
acters in  it  shall  be  real,  and  generally  shall  bear  the  same  name 
throughout. 

And  now  we  will  go  out  on  the  plain,  and  meet  the  first  party 
that  we  judge  worth  our  study,  as  they  may  be  coming  in  from 
the  country.  As  we  stand  by  the  pond,  in  which  live  the  shell- 
fish mentioned  a  few  pages  back,  we  see  a  party  approaching. 

*  Atraso  is  the  reverse  of  progreso  —  progress  —  an  idea  almost  worshiped  by 
the  Granadinos.  Unfortunately,  of  the  presence  of  this  Messiah  of  theirs  we  find 
too  little  evidence,  but  their  desire  for  it  is  earnest  and  universal. 


380  NEW   GRANADA. 

They  suit  my  purpose,  for  I  know  them  well.  The  portly,  in- 
telligent gentleman  that  leads  the  van  is  Senor  Eladio  Vargas 
(Murgueitio),  a  well-educated  gentleman,  who  is  returning  from 
his  hacienda,  on  the  banks  of  the  Tulua,  to  his  home  in  Car- 
tago.  He  has  studied  in  Lleras'  Colegio  in  Bogota,  as  have  all 
the  best-educated  gentlemen  of  my  acquaintance;  and,  like 
many  of  them,  he  is  a  violent  political  enemy  of  his  preceptor, 
and  you  must  make  allowance  for  all  he  says  of  him.  We  al- 
ways have  to  make  allowance  for  some  things  even  in  our  best 
friends,  and  I  must  confess  my  fear  that  Don  Eladio  does  not 
always  stop  with  exaggeration  even. 

In  the  house  of  a  respectable  merchant  in  Bogota  he  found 
his  wife,  Senora  Susana  Pinzon  de  Vargas,  an  amiable,  not  over- 
energetic  lady,  with  whom  he  is  riding,  and  to  whom  he  is  very 
attentive  and  truly  kind.  I  am  able  to  say  that  the  Spanish 
race  make  far  superior  husbands  to  the  French,  nor  do  I  know 
"  that,  in  this  respect,  they  are  excelled  in  the  world.  Dona  Su- 
sana learned  what  she  knows  chiefly  by  being  immured  in  the 
school  of  the  widow  of  President  Santander.  She  is  not, 
however,  greatly  inclined  to  books.  She  is,  at  least,  respectful 
to  the  Church,  and  wears  a  carnelian  cross,  the  gift  of  a  pope  to 
a  bishop,  who  was  her  uncle.  She  is  just  now  intensely  suffer- 
ing with  ear-ache,  and  to  this  is  added  the  fatigue  of  a  journey 
50  miles  from  the  banks  of  the  Tulua. 

With  her  comes  her  sister,  Senorita  Manuela  Pinzon.  Edu- 
cated with  Susana  by  the  care  of  the  Senora  de  Santander,  she 
is  perhaps  more  literary,  and  in  body  and  mind  more  active  than 
she.  As  to  her  personal  appearance,  the  reader  must  judge  for 
himself.  But  in  the  figure  opposite  you  see  her  in  the  dress 
in  which  she  took  a  fancy  to  be  pictured,  and  in  which  she  has 
been  wont  to  display  herself  and  her  horsemanship  in  the  Ala- 
meda  of  Bogota.  You  would  see,  on  her  approach  to  Carta- 
go,  the  same  horse,  bridle,  saddle,  and  face ;  but  in  dress  all  is 
changed,  except  the  ruana,  and  possibly  the  hat.  An  ordinary 
walking -dress  is  the  basis  of  her  costume.  A  handkerchief, 
thrown  over  her  head,  is  kept  in  place  by  a  fine  ruana,  lined 
with  silk  on  the  under  side,  and  a  hat,  perhaps  a  small  one,  of 
jipijapa,  like  an  ordinary  boy's  hat,  tied  under  her  chin. 

Senora  Manuela  is  of  a  cheerful  and  lively  turn  of  mind,  not 


GENTEEL  BUT  POOR. 


381 


FASHIONABLE    RIDING-DRESS. 


so  pious  as  her  sister,  but  still  a  faithful  attendant  at  the  mass 
on  days  when  absence  is  sin — on  the  fasts  and  feasts.  She  can 
talk  rapidly  and  much,  but  she  says  little  that  would  interest 
those  who  knew  none  of  her  acquaintances.  And  yet  her  stock 
of  information  is  considerably  above  that  of  ladies  in  general, 
for  she  has  read  a  number  of  novels  of  Dumas  and  Sue — trans- 
lated into  Spanish,  of  course,  for  very  few  ladies  here  read 
French. 

But  the  most  decided  character  of  the  group  is  yet  to  be  men- 
tioned. It  is  the  gentleman's  sister,  Senorita  Elodia  Vargas. 
She  has  a  character  of  her  own,  as  well  as  a  face  easily  remem- 
bered. Of  a  stronger  make  than  most  ladies,  and  with  a  varied 
life,  she  has  been  alike  at  home  in  the  Cauca,  Bogota,  and  Cho- 
co.  There  I  think  she  was  born,  to  rule  over  a  hundred  slaves, 
that  washed  gold  for  her  father,  ate  plantains  and  fish,  and  went 
almost  naked.  They  are  free,  and  the  family  revenues  are  re- 
duced indeed ;  for  the  gold-washings  can  not  be  prosecuted  by 


NEW  GRANADA. 

whites  in  Choco,  and  free  negroes  will  not  work  when  they  de- 
sire nothing  that  gold  can  bring.  Hence  only  one  fourth  as 
much  gold  is  obtained  as  before  1852.  So  the  old  place  in  Cho- 
co has  gone  to  ruin,  Senor  Vargas  is  dead,  and  the  family  must 
live  on  what  the  ill-managed  Hacienda  of  La  E-ibera  can  yield. 

But  all  this  seems  to  make  little  difference  with  Elodia  Var- 
gas (Murgueitio).  Dignified,  calm,  and  pious,  she  seems  to  be 
above  such  changes.  She  is  a  faithful  observer  of  all  the  ordi- 
nances of  her  Church.  She  is  in  many  respects  the  head  of  the 
family,  and  her  strong  will  is  law  to  the  members  of  the  family 
as  well  as  the  servants.  They  lack  firmness — she  has  enough ; 
and  her  judgment  proves  the  best  in  the  end. 

Just  as  we  re-entered  Cartago  we  passed  one  of  the  numerous 
bridges  that  cross  the  brooks  and  ditches  which  are  plenty  in  the 
plain  around.  The  old  wooden  structure  had  given  way,  and 
let  in  a  gentleman's  carga  mule.  A  part  of  the  load  had  been  a 
live  Guinea-pig,  brought  for  some  days  from  up  the  river,  which, 
when  on  the  threshold  of  a  new  home,  had  thus  finished  its  mor- 
tal journey.  We  crossed  the  ditch — brook  I  ought  to  call  it,  I 
suppose — without  being  much  bespattered,  and  in  a  moment 
more  were  in  the  Plaza,  and,  entering  a  porton,  soon  found  our- 
selves in  the  patio  of  a  casa  alta. 

As  we  filed  up  the  stairs,  at  the  head  there  was  another  file 
to  meet  us.  Don  Eladio  found  himself  first  in  the  arms  of  his 
widowed  mother,  Dona  Ana  Murgueitio  de  Vargas,  a  woman  of 
nearly  sixty,  something  like  her  daughter  Elodia,  though  hardly 
as  dignified  as  she  will  be  at  her  mother's  age.  I  wish  it  were 
more  common  for  old  women  to  be  pretty  here,  but  that  can  not 
be  without  education.  But  of  really  old  women  there  can  not 
be  many  in  the  country.  I  can  not  think  now  of  an  octogena- 
rian of  either  sex. 

Next  in  order  came  a  pretty  girl  of  about  seventeen — Merce- 
des. Of  her  parentage  or  relations  I  know  little,  except  that 
Eladio  whispered  to  me,  at  the  first  opportunity,, "  She  is  the 
daughter  of  a  white  man."  I  should  think  her  mother,  too, 
might  have  been  as  white  as  his. 

With  two  more  embracings  Eladio's  salutations  were  finish- 
ed. These  were  with  a  venerable  negro  cook,  and  another  serv- 
ant, a  few  shades  lighter,  and  a  little  cleaner  in  dress.  In  all 


A  REAL  BED.  383 

these  huggings  I  had  no  part.  The  first  half  of  them,  or  even 
less,  would  have  pleased  me  as  well  as  the  whole ;  indeed,  I  was 
contented  with  the  matter  as  it  was. 

The  house  had  originally  "been  one  of  magnificent  dimensions. 
It  occupied  three  sides  of  a  square,  and  covered  ground  enough 
for  a  large  hotel.  But  it  had  been  inherited  by  two  children, 
who  proceeded  to  run  a  wall  through  the  middle,  with  a  porton 
on  each  side,  and  in  the  same  way  the  front  and  back  patios 
were  divided.  Evidences  of  diminished  magnificence  in  this 
way  are  visible  over  all  the  towns  of  the  Cauca,  but  in  this  case 
it  was  an  advantage ;  for,  had  the  furniture  of  the  family  been 
scattered  over  double  the  space,  it  would  have  cost  them  much 
unnecessary  walking  to  go  from  article  to  article. 

In  addition  to  the  interior  corridor,  we  have  balconies  over- 
looking the  Plaza,  and  an  exterior  corredor  on  the  side  that 
overlooks  a  church  patio  filled  with  a  dense  mass  of  weeds. 
This  corredor  is  our  dining-room,  and  a  pleasant  one.  The 
kitchen  is  still  farther  from  the  street,  a  large,  desolate  room, 
without  a  table  or  chair,  and,  withal,  somewhat  dilapidated  in 
its  walls.  The  tinajera,  the  forge-like  cooking-place,  and  the 
grinding-stone,  are  all  that  the  room  contains.  The  transit 
from  the  sala  to  the  dining  corredor  can  not  be  made  without 
passing  through  the  principal  dormitory  of  the  family  or  through 
this  kitchen.  The  road  by  the  dormitory,  even  had  it  been  the 
longer,  would  be  better  to  travel  in  going  to  dinner. 

One  article  of  furniture  surprised  me.  It  was  a  spacious  and 
elegant  iron  bedstead  from  Europe,  with  a  wide,  thick,  and  soft 
hair  mattress,  that  might  have  made  a  bed  for  the  President, 
had  he  been  a  Conservador  and  their  guest.  As  it  is,  it  seems 
rather  an  article  of  curiosity,  for  I  do  not  know  that  it  has  ever 
yet  been  covered  with  sheets,  unless  it  be  to  keep  the  dust  off; 
nor  is  it  of  any  use  except  to  show  what  Sybarites  the  Tem- 
perate Zone  harbors.  How  we  all  sleep  here  is  more  than  I  can 
say.  The  ground  floor  in  the  rear  is  a  stable,  and  in  front  it  is 
rented  to  a  family.  The  servants  sleep  in  the  kitchen,  or  on 
the  floor  of  the  principal  dormitory.  I  assign  the  smaller  dor- 
mitory to  the  queenly,  pious  Elodia,  sprightly  Manuela,  and 
Mercedes,  the  white  man's  daughter.  And  Eladio,  his  mother, 
wife,  two  children,  and  their  nurse,  with  the  two  other  serv- 


384  NEW  GRANADA. 

ants,  could  find  plenty  of  room  in  the  large  dormitory.  My 
inseparable  friend,  the  hammock,  hangs  in  the  sala,  a  luxury 
by  day  and  a  necessity  at  night. 

But  Susana  Pinzon  de  Vargas  has  the  ear-ache.  She  is  dis- 
tracted with  it.  It  is  worse  after  dinner.  She  can  hardly  sit 
still  long  enough  to  nurse  her  babe.  And  a  ball  is  coming  off 
to-night.  It  is  not  a  hacienda  ball,  such  as  we  are  yet  to  see, 
but  a  town  ball,  such  as  we  saw  in  the  last  chapter,  from  which 
it  seems  that  neither  the  sick  nor  those  in  prison  can  be  spared ; 
for  Susana  went  not  distracted  as  I  feared,  but,  needing  some 
distraction  in  her  agony,  went  to  the  ball,  and,  as  I  could  not 
attend  this  evening,  I  saw  her  no  more  till  morning. 

In  the  morning  she  was  no  better,  and  the  doctor  was  called. 
He  prescribed  cupping,  and  the  barber  was  accordingly  sent  for. 
He  produced  a  scarificator,  and  Dona  Susana  was  surprised  that 
so  ingenious  a  piece  of  mechanism  should  have  strayed  beyond 
the  walls  of  the  Inquisition.  But  the  proposition  of  trying  its 
multiplied  knives  on  her  was  simply  absurd.  And,  indeed,  scar- 
ification in  any  form,  however  proper  for  others,  could  never  be 
permitted  on  her.  The  physician  was  gone,  and  when  Eladio 
proposed,  as  a  compromise,  that  she  be  bled  in  the  arm,  she  as- 
sented, glad  to  be  thus  rid  of  the  barber,  and  he  assented,  glad 
thus  to  gain  his  fee  and  be  off. 

An  accidental  discovery  here  looks  worse  than  it  is :  let  no 
lady  faint  over  it  or  scream  audibly.  I  happened  in  the  dor- 
mitory one  morning  before  Seiior  Vargas  had  risen.  He  was 
late,  for  the  Senorita  Manuela  Pinzon,  his  sprightly  sister-in-law, 
was  already  dressed  and  conversing  with  him  when  he  began  to 
rise.  He  sat  up  in  bed  stark  naked,  except  so  far  as  covered 
by  the  bed-clothes,  for,  like  Jaques  Couche-tout-nu  in  the  Wan- 
dering Jew,  he  denudes  himself  entirely  when  he  goes  to  bed. 
I  do  not  know  whether  this  custom  prevails  out  of  the  Cauca : 
I  should  not  have  discovered  it  if  it  had. 

I  can  not  tell  what  people  do  in  Cartago.  It  is  a  quiet  place 
for  one  in  its  position.  It  stands  where  four  great  ways  of  com- 
merce meet.  Above  is  a  grazing  country,  that  yields  horses, 
mules,  beef,  and  pork.  Beef  is  cheaper  on  the  vast  plains  of 
the  East,  in  Casanare,  for  instance,  but  there  they  have  no  de- 
mand for  it.  Below  Cartago  is  the  gold  country  of  Antioquia, 


TEADE  OF  CARTAGO.  385 

including  also  part  of  the  province  of  Cauca,  where  little  food 
is  raised.  Rough,  steep,  and  rocky,  it  looks  to  the  plains  above 
for  its  beef  and  pork,  horses  and  mules.  I  estimate  this  dig- 
ging population  at  249,822,  most  of  whom  eat  some  beef  and 
pork,  and  use  some  beasts  of  burden.  West  of  here  is  the 
gold-washing,  fish-eating  province  of  Choco,  with  a  population 
of  43,639.  Enough  of  these  see  beef  and  lard  once  a  year, 
or  oftener,  to  make  the  population  dependent  on  the  pastures 
above  Cartago  a  quarter  of  a  million. 

Some  horses  and  mules  are  driven  over  the  Quindio,  but  no 
beef.  Dried  beef  is  sold  for  this  journey.  Most  of  the  salt 
used  in  the  upper  Cauca  comes  over  the  Quindio,  and  a  large 
part  of  the  imported  goods.  Most  of  the  hides  of  animals  raised 
here  are  put  to  uses  unknown  at  the  North,  as  mats,  beds,  bas- 
kets, trunks,  packing-boxes,  chairs,  cordage,  harness,  fence, 
doors,  and  other  uses  too  numerous  to  mention ;  so  there  is  no 
hide  trade.  A  tobacco  trade  is  springing  up.  The  cinchona 
of  the  province  of  Popayan  passes  through  Cartago,  and  over 
the  Quindio,  to  avoid  the  risks  of  Buenaventura.  Tobacco 
makes  its  exit  in  both  directions.  Cacao  is  raised  above,  and 
sent  through  here  to  the  mines.  Rice  might  be.  Indigo  might 
be  exported. 

You  would  expect  merchants  here  with  advertisements  out  in 
all  directions  of  "Highest  cash  price  paid  for  cacao;"  "Beef 
wanted  ;"  "  Wanted  100  mules ;"  "  Northern  goods  given  for 
indigo ;"  "  Coffee  received  in  the  smallest  quantities  for  silks 
and  hardware."  No  such  thing.  Probably  no  merchant  in  Car- 
tago ever  spent  a  dollar  in  advertising.  Barter  is  unknown  to 
me,  if  even  the  word  is  found  in  Spanish.  Trueque^  the  near- 
est word,  would  hardly  suggest  the  idea. 

Commerce  has  three  stages  of  existence.  First  is  naked  cash, 
without  bills,  barter,  or  credit.  It  is  sure — sure  as  the  march 
of  a  snail.  Next  comes  barter,  mixed,  of  course,  with  what  cash 
there  may  be  in  a  region.  For  this  the  Cauca  commerce  seems 
waiting.  Lastly  comes  the  fast  system  of  cash,  bills  of  credit, 
bank-notes,  exchange,  double-entry,  shaving,  great  fortunes,  and 
splendid  bankruptcies  for  half  a  million.  The  light  of  this  mil- 
lennium is  yet  to  dawn  here. 

With  all  this,  I  am  surprised  to  see  so  little  in  the  streets  of 


386 


NEW  GRANADA. 


WATER-B01T    AT   CXRTAOO. 


Cartago.  The  most  active  doings  I  see  are  the  movements  of 
the  water-boys.  They  are  mounted  on  a  mule,  a  horse,  or  the 
ruins  of  either,  while  yet  the  vital  spark  remains.  To  the  four 
corners  of  the  saw-horse  that  serves  as  a  saddle  are  hung  four 
tarras  of  guadua.  The  imp  to  whose  mercy  the  quadruped  is 
abandoned  rides  deep  enough  into  the  arm  of  the  La  Vieja  to 
dip  up  his  water  without  dismounting.  He  ought  to  dip  it  up 
only  on  the  upper  side  of  the  horse,  with  no  other  water-boy 
above  him,  nor  any  groom  washing  down  horses,  nor  any  bath- 
ers, but  you  can  not  make  such  a  scapegrace  careful.  His  mind 
is  all  bent  on  running  races  with  water-boys  as  wretchedly 
mounted  as  himself.  Now  he  is  stopped  by  a  woman  that  of- 
fers him  a  cigar  if  he  will  hang  on  her  two  tarras,  and  return 
them  to  her  full.  He  asks  no  consent  of  his  beast  or  his  em- 
ployer. So  a  water-boy  knows  no  want  of  cigars. 


DISSERTATION  ON  FLEAS.  387 

I  can  not  take  leave  of  Cartago  without  mentioning  the  most 
numerous,  and  by  far  the  most  active  part  of  its  population. 
The  flea  is  a  beautiful  object  when  secured  in  balsam  between 
two  plates  of  glass  for  the  microscope.  Trained  to  drag  a  chain 
or  draw  a  carriage,  as  these  little  hexapods  are  said  to  have 
been,  they  are  worthy  of  the  attention  of  the  curious.  And  or- 
ganize them  into  an  army,  and  the  sharp,  slender  claws,  so  beau- 
tifully exhibited  in  the  microscope,  show  themselves  admirable 
for  clinging  to  you,  and  the  curious  lancet  is  a  most  perfect  in- 
strument for  perforating  the  human  cuticle. 

But  to  all  these  good  qualities  there  are  two  drawbacks.  One 
is  his  nullibiquity — nirgendheit  our  German  cousins  would  call 
it — his  no-where-ness  "when  you  put  your  finger  on  him;" 
and  the  other  is  the  hardness  of  his  cuirass.  It  would  take  me 
till  night  to  tell  you  of  all  the  adventures  which  have  taught  me 
the  extent  of  these  qualities.  One  time  I  will  "put  my  finger 
on  him"  really.  I  crush  him,  ruin  him,  pulverize  him,  and  take 
up  my  finger  to  feast  my  eyes  on  his  mangled  carcass,  when  lo ! 
he  bounds  off  eight  hundred  times  his  length,  and  I  can  almost 
imagine  a  tiny  derisive  laugh  at  the  idea  of  his  getting  a  broken 
leg  or  a  sprained  ankle  so  easily.  I  can  find  another  more  eas- 
ily than  catch  him  again. 

Another  time  I  wet  my  finger  before  I  put  it  on  him :  he 
shall  not  fool  me  so.  I  rub  him  till  I  have  broken  every  bone 
in  his  body,  and  almost  the  bones  of  my  finger  besides.  I  stop 
and  deliberate  whether  I  will  let  him  up  yet.  No  ;  I  will  make 
assurance  doubly  sure  by  giving  him  one  more  crushing.  Then 
I  take  my  finger  off,  and  lo,  "  he  isn't  there !"  Of  course  I  look 
foolish.  But  no  mortal  can  stave  off  his  fate  when  his  time 
comes ;  so  I  find  recorded  in  my  diary,  "  Paila,  9  July,  1853. 
Had  a  capital  day.  Dreamed  of  home  last  night ;  had  recent 
beef  for  dinner ;  got  a  new  plant,  caught  a  butterfly,  and  killed 
a  flea."  The  flea  that  died  that  day  met,  doubtless,  an  acci- 
dental death ;  but  my  last  visit  to  Cartago  initiated  me  into  the 
art  of  flea-catching  by  incessant  practice.  I  killed  dozens  of 
them.  It  was  almost  worth  a  journey  there.  Once  I  went 
down  the  La  Vieja  and  bathed.  I  turned  my  clothes  inside 
out,  and  with  unpitying  eye  saw  no  less  than  six  ejected,  far 
from  any  house,  to  take  the  chances  of  the  weather ;  and  all  the 
way  home  I  was  the  sole  tenant  of  my  vestments. 


NEW  GRANADA. 

But  we  must  leave  Cartago.  Don  Eladio  and  his  wife,  her 
sister,  and  the  children,  are  to  start  for  Tulua.  His  kindness 
mounted  me  on  an  easy  horse  and  a  safe  one,  for  he  consid- 
ers me  a  babe  in  horsemanship.  What  he  would  say  to  one 
whose  equestrian  education  had  been  finished  on  a  Yankee  farm, 
without  any.  farther  lessons  at  the  South  and  West,  I  can  not 
tell.  There  ought  to  be  no  better  horsemen  in  the  world  than 
those  of  the  Cauca,  but  you  would  never  observe  the  fact. 
The  Caucano  is  not  proud  of  his  horsemanship.  He  makes  no 
display,  and  I  do  not  know  of  any  one  who  has  any  reputation 
as  a  horseman,  or  wishes  any.  They  ride  as  if  by  instinct  and 
of  course.  Still,  I  think  we  have  some  greatly  exaggerated  ac- 
counts of  Spanish-American  horsemanship. 

We  soon  passed  rock  in  situ — not  in  a  mountain,  not  in  a 
high  hill.  The  road  had  once  passed  over  a  steep  knoll,  15  feet 
high.  Travel  had  cut  it  down  to  a  level  with  the  plain  for  a 
space  of  10  feet  in  width. 

The  sides  and  bottom  of  this  cut  are  horizontal  strata  of  sand- 
stone. Farther  up  I  found  strata  of  infusorial  earth  in  it.  It  is 
so  soft  and  so  white  that  it  is  used  as  chalk,  and  both  are  call- 
ed tiza.  The  best  I  saw  was  10  or  15  miles  above  Cartago, 
where  I  picked  out  a  specimen  from  the  bank  for  my  friends  at 
home.* 

I  can  not  say  enough  of  the  country  over  which  we  swiftly 
sweep  in  a  large  and  gay  troop.  Bosques,  knolls,  green  glades, 
gentle  slopes,  hill-sides,  and  small  plains  came  along  in  an  ever- 
varying  succession.  Only  the  brooks  were  mute.  They  had 
neither  velocity  nor  pebbles  to  give  them  voice.  They  added 
no  beauty  where  they  alone  could  have  added  any. 

At  Saragoza,  a  small  village,  some  who  had  mounted  to  ac- 
company us  took  leave  and  turned  back.  Just  there  I  saw  the 
first  and  last  live  specimen  of  the  sloth,  here  called  Perico  lijero 
(swift  Perico).  It  may  be  the  Acheus  Ai.  Ai  is  a  natural  in- 
terjection expressive  of  pain,  and  is  given  to  the  animal  on  ac- 
count of  his  doleful  cries.  He  was  as  large  as  a  middle-sized 
dog,  and  clung  to  the  stick  to  which  he  was  tied,  and  by  which 
his  possessor  bore  him  on  his  shoulder.  They  live  back  down- 
ward, in  a  state  of  perpetual  suspense  that  would  be  quite  dis- 

*  It  was  lost. 


PEDRO  THE  LIAR.  389 

agreeable  to  ordinary  animals.  They  are  no  more  helpless  on 
the  ground  than  a  lamb  would  be  in  a  tree.  Specimens  of  mam- 
mals are  so  scarce  here  that  the  traveler  should  never  presume 
on  future  opportunities.  Much  to  my  regret,  I  had  to  leave  this. 

At  dark  I  discovered  the  head  of  the  column  entering  the  gate 
of  Seiior  Pedro  Sanchez,  a  few  miles  north  of  Obando.  It  stands 
somewhat  out  of  the  way,  on  a  pleasant  knoll.  I  did  not  sup- 
pose at  the  time  that  he  had  any  better  business  than  keeping 
a  sort  of  tavern,  by  giving  his  rooms  up  to  travelers.  I  have 
since  learned  not  to  judge  men  by  their  furniture.  The  family 
left  the  sala  to  our  sole  occupancy.  The  spirit  of  delay,  that 
guides  all  travelers'  movements  here,  made  our  morning  start  to 
hang  off  till  3  P.M.  For  this  we  made  up  by  a  dinner  between 
9  and  10.  My  short,  rapid  ride  fatigued  me  exceedingly,  more 
so  than  the  hardest  day's  walk. 

While  waiting  in  the  piazza,  for  dinner,  they  diverted  me  with 
the  babe-carrier  by  setting  him  to  lying.  He  was  a  thick-set 
Choco  negro  of  about  40  or  45,  whose  comical  ways  of  pacifying 
the  babe  on  his  back,  when  it  worried,  had  diverted  me  much 
more  than  did  the  lies  he  now  told,  which  had  no  other  merit 
than  their  size  and  coolness.  Among  the  rest,  he  said  he  was 
engaged  to  a  beautiful  princess  in  Europe,  and  was  going  on 
soon  to  claim  his  bride.  He  appeared  fully  satisfied  when  he 
found  he  had  earned  from  me  the  surname  of  Pedro  el  Embus- 
tero  (Pedro  the  Liar). 

We  were  obliged  to  supply  our  own  water,  and  that  delayed 
us  considerably.  The  peon  that  went  after  it  had  with  him  an- 
other to  dispel  his  fears,  light  his  way,  or  drive  off  the  wild 
beasts  with  a  bright-flaming  brand  that  resembled  pitch-pine, 
but  was  called  cipres.  Neither  this  nor  cedro  are  coniferous 
trees.  The  latter  may  be  Amyris  or  Cedrela.  Of  the  former  I 
could  obtain  leaves  only. 

It  was  a  pleasant  January  evening  as  we  sat  out  there  in  the 
piazza,  neither  too  warm  nor  too  cold,  till  our  dinner  was  ready, 
and  then  I  was  soon  hung  up  in  my  hammock,  and  the  others 
spread  round  miscellaneously,  and  all  asleep  on  tables,  poyo, 
and  floor.  We  decided  to  rise  at  two,  take  chocolate  immedi- 
ately, and  start  at  three.  No  such  plan  is  ever  executed.  We 
left  at  half  past  four,  but  without  our  chocolate.  It  was  still 


390  NEW   GRANADA. 

quite  dark  when  we  were  finding  our  way  southward,  not  with- 
out difficulty,  for  most  of  the  road  was  unfenced,  and  paths  led 
in  every  direction.  At  daybreak  we  summoned  up  a  family  in 
Obando  (formerly  Naranjo),  who  kept  a  sort  of  venta,  and  would 
sell  some  aguardiente  to  those  of  us  who  needed. 

We  then  proceeded.  We  left  Pedro  el  Embustero  with  his 
babe  to  make  up  in  diligence  what  he  lacked  in  fleetness.  Na- 
ture has  provided  the  young  with  means  to  keep  pace  with  the 
dam,  but  I  know  of  no  means  to  prevent  a  babe  on  negro-back 
being  an  impediment  to  the  journey  of  the  mother  mounted  on 
a  good  horse.  Of  this  we  felt  the  full  force  to-day.  The  serv- 
ants and  baggage  left  us  behind. 

Here  we  passed  the  Rio  de  los  Micos  on  a  respectable  uncov- 
ered bridge,  the  only  bridge,  in  fact,  capable  of  bearing  the 
weight  of  a  horse  in  all  this  region.  I  pass  no  bridge  unmen- 
tioned. 

At  Victoria  we  called  for  breakfast  just  as  the  people  were 
coming  out  from  mass  in  a  church  not  far  from  us.  The  town, 
if  town  there  be,  is  small,  and,  it  seems,  could  spare  us  nothing 
to  eat.  A  mile  or  two  farther  on,  and  half  a  mile  off  our  road, 
we  were  more  fortunate.  It  cost  us,  however,  two  hours  and  a 
half,  and  as  we  left  it  was  getting  rather  warm  to  travel  in  the 
sun. 

I  saw  here  my  first  nispero,  the  fruit  of  Achras  Sapota,  but 
having  no  resemblance  to  the  zapote,  a  Matisia.  The  nispero 
is  of  the  size  of  a  tolerable  peach,  with  a  number  of  quite  large 
seeds.  It  is  a  comfortable  fruit  to  eat,  but  there  is  a  gummy 
milk  in  the  skin  that  repels,  and  very  little  in  the  flavor  to  in- 
vite a  Northern  palate.  The  zapote  is  just  the  reverse.  It  is 
as  large  as  a  good-sized  apple,  and  has  a  thick  buff  rind,  with  a 
reddish-yellow  pulp  within.  It  is  a  little  fibrous,  but  of  a 
pleasant  flavor.  It  breaks  open  readily,  and  discloses  a  huge 
seed  within,  not  unknown  to  us  of  the  North  on  account  of  its 
beautiful,  smooth,  chestnut-colored  back,  with  a  rougher,  whitish 
hilum  occupying  the  whole  under  surface.  The  pulp  is  gener- 
ally eaten  away  from  the  rind,  which  is  at  last  thrown  away. 
Neither  is  a  first-class  fruit. 

I  am  sorry  we  must  leave  our  party  so  soon,  but  I  have  a 
call  to  make  at  La  Cabana,  a  hacienda  west  of  the  road  a  few 


LA  CABANA.  391 

miles  above  Victoria.  With  earnest  adieus  to  Susana  and 
Manuela  Pinzon,  and  a  real  reluctance  in  separating  me  from 
Senor  Vargas,  and  other  gentlemen  to  whom  I  could  not  well 
introduce  the  reader,  as  we  may  not  meet  them  again  except  as 
strangers,  I  rein  off  to  the  right,  and  soon  a  hillock  intervenes 
between  me  and  the  cavalcade.  I  pursue  a  westward  course  for 
a  surprising  distance.  I  have  considered  our  road  as  lying  be- 
tween the  Cauca  and  mountain  forests,  that  have  been  unoccu- 
pied since  the  extermination  of  the  Indians.  So  it  is  in  theory; 
but  this  belt  of  pasturage,  which  is  often  not  a  mile  wide  be- 
tween the  forest  of  the  Cauca  and  that  of  the  Quindio,  may  ex- 
tend far  into  either. 

Finally,  I  wind  round  a  marsh  surrounded  by  hillocks,  one 
of  which  is  crowned  by  the  buildings  that  bear  the  modest 
name  of  The  Cabin.  Dr.  Guevara  meets  me  at  the  door,  and 
his  wife,  Senora  Monzon,  is  happy  to  meet  one  who  knows  her 
father.  It  is  supposed  that  the  name  once  was  Monson,  and 
that  her  ancestry  is  partly  English.  The  house  seems  an  ac- 
cidental combination  of  three  straggling  buildings,  which  seem 
to  mark  out,  if  not  inclose,  a  patio.  In  one  respect,  it  is  the 
most  admirably  situated  hacienda  in  the  Cauca.  It  is  on  the 
innermost  knoll,  overlooking  a  broad  and  beautiful  pasture  that 
extends  almost  to  the  very  banks  of  the  river.  We  can  not  see 
the  tawny  flood  that  we  saw  last  as  we  passed  its  mouth  on  the 
Magdalena,  but  it  is  here  hid  from  view  by  but  a  narrow  skirt 
of  woods,  and  the  hills  of  the  other  banda  are  quite  near  us. 

But  there  is  one  drawback — the  water.  Most  houses  stand 
near  a  brook.  All  towns  must,  I  know  of  no  well,  nor  any 
name  for  one  in  New  Granada.  I  know  of  but  two  springs  (at 
Mesa  and  Libraida)  which  are  used.  La  Cabana  is  the  only 
hacienda  that  I  know  to  be  supplied  directly  from  the  Cauca. 
Their  tinajera  contains  seven  huge  tinajas.  A  troop  of  negro 
women  go  to  the  river  every  morning,  and  bring  water  on  their 
heads  to  fill  the  one  emptied  the  preceding  day.  It  stands  a 
week  to  settle,  and  is  then  fit  to  drink.  This  may  not  seem 
like  drinking  from  a  deep  well  or  a  spring  that  is  cool  all  sum- 
mer, nor  yet  like  drinking  iced  Croton  water,  but  such  luxuries 
can  not  be  known  here.  The  Cauca  water  is  as  good,  perhaps, 
as  any  in  the  world,  and  may  be  compared  to  water  at  St.  Louis 


392  NEW  GRANADA. 

without  ice.  Elsewhere  I  have  only  drunk  it  at  ferries,  mud 
and  all. 

La  Cabana  has  another  attraction.  It  has  a  study,  a  room 
really  devoted  to  reading  and  writing.  Dr.  Guevara's  library 
must  amount  to  over  100  volumes,  all  in  Spanish  and  French. 
He  takes  also  the  Correo  de  Ultramar,  as  does  also  a  gentleman 
in  Cartago.  It  is  encouraging  to  meet  these  signs  of  a  literary 
taste. 

I  gained  the  highway  at  a  point  above  where  we  left  it.  I 
went  south  of  La  Cabana  half  a  mile,  crossed  a  brook  called  Rio 
Hondo,  in  a  deep  ravine,  from  which  the  ascent  was  the  ugliest 
I  have  ever  seen  yet.  Then  I  wound  around  bosques  and  knolls 
for  a  mile  more  to  the  road.  One  night  afterward  I  retraced 
these  steps  after  dark,  and  dark  it  was  when  I  arrived  at  the 
brink  of  the  ravine,  hoping,  bad  as  it  must  be,  that  it  was  the 
very  same  spot  where  I  had  risked  my  neck  in  daylight  before. 
Conceive  what  the  descent  must  be  in  the  dark.  Suffice  it,  I 
never  yet  have  broken  my  neck.  It  has  not  often  been  in  so 
much  danger  as  there.  Arrived  at  the  other  bank,  I  found  the 
bars  at  the  top  converted  into  an  impregnable  fence,  not  to  be 
passed  by  a  horse  without  destroying  a  great  deal  of  human  la- 
bor. I  looked  above  and  below,  then  tied  my  horse,  and  fin- 
ished my  journey  on  foot.  Senor  Guevara  sent  a  servant,  who 
brought  in  my  horse  by  a  circuit  of  some  miles.  The  bars  had 
been  fenced  up  in  consequence  of  the  carelessness  of  passers, 
who  left  them  open  and  allowed  his  cattle  to  stray. 


VANILLA.  393 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

EOLDANILLO    AND    LAW. 

A  Gentleman  Liar. — Pleasant  Family. — A  nice  Swim. — Over  the  Cauca. — Rich 
Family  and  few  Comforts. — La  Mona. —  Sabbath  Eve. — Roldanillo. — Good 
Priest. — Select  School. — Church  Organ. — Law. — Superiority  of  our  System. — 
Incredulous  Priest. — Civil  Suits. — A  queer  Fruit. — Swimming  the  Cauca. 

DON  ELADIO  VARGAS  and  I  had  been  riding  from  Cartago  to 
Saragoza  when  we  fell  in  with  Belisario  Cabal.  He  is  a  young 
LL.D.,  who  lives  I  know  not  how,  unless  it  be  by  his  interest 
in  the  Hacienda  of  Chaqueral.  Law  pays  little  or  nothing  here. 
I  was,  as  usual,  trying  to  extract  from  him  any  information  that 
he  might  possess  about  the  resources  and  elements  of  wealth  of 
the  country.  He  stated  that  he  had  great  hopes  of  vanilla.  I 
remarked  to  him  that  any  export  worth  a  dollar  or  more  a  pound 
would  be  likely  to  be  able  to  bear  the  costs  of  getting  to  the 
ocean ;  but  no  cheap  ones,  at  present.  He  said  that  he  had 
10,000  plants  of  vanilla  already  set  out,  and  hoped  yet  to  in- 
crease the  quantity.  I  was  glad  ;  hoped  they  would  succeed ; 
should  be  very  happy  to  see  them ;  I  had  seen  none  but  spon- 
taneous vanilla  plants.  He  hoped  I  would  call  at  Chaqueral 
some  time  when  he  was  at  home.  After  more  talk  of  the  same 
sort  we  arrived  at  Saragoza,  and  Belisario  went  on. 

I  had  better  now  speak  of  vanilla,  although  hardly  in  place 
here.  It  is  not  the  Tonqua  bean,  but  a  long  pod  of  a  similar 
flavor.  It  is  no  bean  at  all,  but  is  filled  with  very  minute  seeds. 
It  is  an  orchid  plant.  The  best  species  seems  to  be  Vanilla  ar- 
omatica,  but  some  other  species  have  some  of  the  peculiar  flavor, 
or  rather  odor,  but  perhaps  in  a  less  degree.  I  can  not  tell 
whether  the  Vanilla  aromatica  grows  here.  I  think  it  does, 
from  the  appearance  of  the  fruit  in  size,  shape,  and  odor,  but 
have  no  description  to  compare  the  plant  with.  Most  orchids 
grow  on  trees,  pseudo-parasites,  not  drawing  any  nourishment 
from  the  tree,  as  does  the  mistletoe,  here  a  very  common  plant. 
The  genus  Vanilla  consists  of  thick-leaved  vines,  that  cling  to 


394  NEW   GRANADA. 

the  bark  of  trees,  but  have  their  roots  in  the  ground.  They 
grow  in  deep  woods,  and,  as  orchids  are  apt  to  do,  very  sparsely. 
You  are  by  no  means  sure  of  finding  two  specimens  of  the  same 
species  on  the  same  acre  or  in  the  same  day.  I  have  spent 
hours  and  hours  in  hunting  vanilla  flowers,  but  never  found  but 
two.  The  cultivation  of  such  a  plant  would  be  very  peculiar, 
but  might  be  a  mine  of  wealth  should  it  succeed. 

When  Belisario  had  gone  on,  Eladio  told  me  that  all  he  had 
been  telling  me  was  a  string  of  lies. 

I  stopped,  and  looked  hard  in  his  face.  Couldn't  I  under- 
stand Spanish? 

"  He  has  not  a  single  root  of  vanilla  in  cultivation,"  said  he. 
"It  is  all  lies." 

So,  when  I  had  proceeded  up  from  La  Cabana  ta  Las  Lajas 
— Flat  Stones — River,  I  turned  off  to  the  east  toward  Chaque- 
ral,  not  to  see  a  vanilla  plantation,  but  a  liar.  A  gentleman  liar 
would  be  less  of  a  curiosity  now ;  but  my  readers  will  excuse 
me — I  was  green  then,  and  believed  what  gentlemen  told  me.  A 
man  needs  to  be  a  year  in  a  country  before  he  can  begin  the 
study  of  the  character  of  its  inhabitants  to  advantage.  I  want- 
ed to  see  how  Belisario  would  look,  what  he  would  say,  when  I 
insisted  on  seeing  his  vanilla  plantation. 

Leaving  to  my  right  a  house  on  a  pretty  knoll,  on  the  right 
bank  of  the  Rio  de  Las  Lajas,  I  passed  through  a  hill  by  one  of 
those  hoof-worn  cuts  so  common  on  the  Cauca,  even  on  planta- 
tion roads.  I  entered  on  a  plain  beyond,  or  the  valley  of  a 
brook.  Here  I  met  young  Belisario,  who  was  very  glad  to  see 
me.  He  was  going  up  to  Libraida  on  business,  but  he  would 
turn  back  and  introduce  me  to  his  aunt  and  cousin  (that  noun 
was  feminine — prima),  and  would  be  back  to  a  late  dinner.  In 
fact,  he  does  not  live  at  the  hacienda,  but  at  Buga,  where  he  at- 
tends to  his  business.  It  was  fortunate  that  I  found  him  near 
home. 

So  we  turned  round,  and  proceeded  in  toward  the  mountains 
by  an  unending  series  of  knolls,  plains,  cuts,  and  little  preci- 
pices of  6  to  10  feet.  We  bent  northward,  too,  till  I  began  to 
think  that  he  was  leading  me  by  a  roundabout  way  to  Victoria, 
and  that  there  was  not  even  a  Chaqueral,  an  aunt,  or  a  prima, 
any  more  than  a  vanilla-field.  At  length  we  saw  the  house  of 


THE  MIDDLING  CLASS.  395 

a  tenant,  a  field  for  fattening  cattle,  and  then  the  house.  It  was 
a  mere  cottage,  on  the  top  of  a  steep  knoll,  not  far  from  the 
right  bank  of  that  troublesome  Rio  Hondo  that  I  found  south 
of  La  Cabana. 

The  house  was  a  cottage  of  three  rooms.  Along  the  front 
ran  a  corredor,  and  before  it  was  a  fence  half  down  the  hill,  with 
an  entrance  gate.  Behind  was  a  smooth,  well-swept  area,  that 
might  be  called  a  patio ;  but  there  were  no  buildings  around  it 
except  a  shed  to  cook  under,  in  place  of  the  kitchen  that  had 
been  burned  down. 

Of  course,  the  central  room  we  entered  was  the  sala.  On  the 
north  end  (left  hand)  was  the  family-room  (very  small),  and  on 
the  opposite  end  was  a  room  for  Belisario,  or,  in  his  absence,  for 
Don  Modesto  Gamba,  his  uncle.  Opposite  the  front  door  was 
the  back  door,  that  opened  out  on  a  diminutive  piazza  or  corre- 
dor, with  two  small  closets,  or  pantries,  at  the  ends.  Such  were 
the  reduced  halls  of  the  vanilla  planter.  Don  Modesto  seemed 
to  be  a  sort  of  partner  or  tenant  of  the  young  lawyer.  He  was 
now  out,  probably  at  work  with  his  own  hands.  Dona  Paz  Ca- 
bal de  Gamba  was  sitting  at  a  table,  making  cigars.  The  pri- 
ma,  Isabel  Gamba  (Cabal),  was  sitting  by  the  door  on  the  floor, 
making  a  gown.  Her  cousin  introduced  me,  and  wished  me  a 
pleasant  time  till  his  return. 

All  hopes  of  vanilla  being  postponed  till  after  dinner  (most 
probably  at  night),  I  began  to  make  the  best  of  circumstances. 
I  was  evidently  not  unknown  to  them,  though  I  had  never  heard 
of  them.  Isabel  was  about  18,  and  wore  the  peasant-dress,  which 
suited  her  very  well.  If  there  is  some  negro  blood  in  her  veins, 
it  is  not  perceptible.  The  gown  she  was  making  was  for  her- 
self— she  dresses,  then,  sometimes  as  a  lady.  A  novel,  trans- 
lated from  the  French,  lay  on  the  table.  She  loved  reading, 
but  never  had  any  education.  Cousin  Belisario  lent  her  books. 
Her  brother,  a  student  in  Bogota,  had  given  her  some. 

Here,  then,  was  an  intermediate  link  between  the  aristocracy 
and  the  peasantry  of  the  country.  She  belonged  rather  to  the 
latter  by  birth,  but,  although  she  had  never  been  educated,  she 
had  contrived  to  pick  up  enough  to  make  her  really  quite  attract- 
ive, as  more  than  one  aristocratic  Caucano  would  acknowledge, 
if  he  dared  speak  his  mind.  My  own  opinion,  at  this  distance 


396  NEW  GRANADA. 

of  time  and  place,  is  this,  that  she  is  just  the  most  agreeable  na- 
tive lady  that  I  have  found  in  all  New  Granada.  Her  father 
and  mother  are  plain,  good  people,  that  seem  quite  contented 
with  their  girl,  and  hope  the  best  for  their  absent  son. 

All  their  domestic  help  consisted  of  two  little  black  mute 
girls  of  perhaps  8  and  10.  They  are  not  idiots,  and  are  very 
lively,  can  hear  as  well  as  any  body,  understand  all  you  say, 
but  do  not  speak  more  than  a  syllable  or  two.  I  have  watched 
them  closely,  and  even  studied  them,  as  in  many  points  they  re- 
sembled those  remarkable  dwarfs  exhibited  in  the  United  States 
as  "Aztec  children,"  the  remains  of  an  extinct  race.  I  had 
busied  myself  with  those  "Aztecs,"  and  had  fortunately  dis- 
covered, by  a  letter  from  Granada,  their  history,  and  that  they 
were  dwarfed  specimens  of  a  mixed  race  of  ordinary  size.  The 
little  mutes  at  Chaqueral  scarcely  differed  from  them  except  in 
size.  They  were  lively,  active,  cheerful,  ready  to  do  any  thing 
that  their  strength  permitted,  but  could  not  be  made  to  speak  a 
word. 

I  spent  the  day  very  pleasantly  reading  and  talking,  with  one 
or  two  strolls  along  the  margin  of  the  stream.  In  one  of  our 
chats  Isabel  looked  up  from  her  work,  and  asked  me  if  I  had 
any  children. 

"  I  never  was  married,"  I  replied. 

"  Belisario  told  me  that  you  was  a  bachelor,  but  I  thought 
quite  probably  you  might  have  children  nevertheless." 

"  Were  I  so  unscrupulous  as  to  be  a  father  before  marriage, 
I  should  be  enough  so  to  deny  it  also.  Were  I  suspected  of 
such  a  thing,  I  have  not  a  friend  that  would  not  close  his  doors 
against  me.  Such  persons  are  not  admitted  into  the  society 
that  I  frequent." 

I  did  not  tell  her  of  the  upper-ten-dom  of  New  York,  where 
only  poor  and  vulgar  debauchees  are  rejected,  perhaps  for  the 
reason  that  follows : 

"  Were  we  to  be  so  particular  here,"  says  Dona  Paz,  "  we 
should  have  to  live  without  society." 

They  thought  with  me  that  it  was  a  great  misfortune  that 
things  were  so,  but  she  did  not  know  that  their  religion  had  any 
thing  to  do  with  the  laxity  of  their  morals.  I  had  been  before 
asked  in  the  same  way  about  my  children  by  a  gentleman 


HUNTING  A  VANILLA  FIELD.  397 

who  had  already  invited  me  to  an  intimacy  with  his  amiable 
family. 

At  night  Belisario  returned  from  Libraida,  and  his  uncle  from 
his  work,  and  we  three  sat  down,  I  at  the  head,  and  they  at  the 
side  of  the  coarse,  long,  substantial  table.  I  had  the  post  of 
honor  there  in  the  arm-chair ;  they  sat  on  the  poyo.  Isabel 
stood  and  looked  on,  to  see  that  we  wanted  nothing.  After  we 
were  through,  the  dishes  were  removed  to  the  ground  at  the  back 
corredor,  where  she  and  her  mother  sat  down  and  ate. 

On  another  occasion,  when  they  had  with  them  Belisario's  sis- 
ter, Virginia  Cabal  (pronounced  Virr-hin'-yah),  and  the  gentle- 
men were  both  away,  I  protested  that  I  was  not  used  to  eating 
alone,  and  they  must  eat  with  me.  Two  more  plates  were  put 
on,  and  the  young  ladies  sat  down,  but  they  refused  to  eat. 
They  conversed  till  I  was  through,  and  then  dined  with  Dona 
Paz  on  the  ground  in  the  corredor.  I  think  the  custom  of  the 
women  eating  apart  from  the  "lords  of  creation,"  and  on  the 
floor,  is  giving  way  a  little.  The  best  families  in  the  Cauca  do 
not  practice  it. 

In  the  morning,  the  first  topic  was  Vanilla.  The  plantation 
was  too  distant  to  visit,  but  we  would  go  and  see  some  sponta- 
neous specimens.  Don  Modesto  accompanied  us.  We  passed 
up  the  stream  some  way,  and  he  showed  me  a  plant  climbing 
quite  high  on  a  tree.  It  was  another  species  of  Vanilla,  and  not 
V.  aromatica,  as  was  clear  from  the  fruit,  which  was  shorter  than 
the  true  pod,  and  not  triangular,  but  flat,  and  more  than  an  inch 
broad.  I  judged  the  pod  to  be  bicarpellary. 

But  the  cultivation  of  the  precious  plant  was  so  important 
that  I  would  grudge  no  time  to  see  it  with  my  own  eyes ;  so 
after  breakfast  we  mounted,  and  went  inward  toward  the  mount- 
ain. We  went  in  farther  than  I  have  ever  since  seen  any  oc- 
cupied land,  except  near  Tulua.  We  came  to  a  pasture  that  is 
shut  in  mostly  by  a  ravine  and  a  stout  fence ;  beyond  this  we 
entered  the  woods,  so  that  there  was  nothing  but  a  forest  be- 
tween us  and  the  neighborhood  of  the  Magdalena.  Here  he 
showed  me  three  plants  of  a  vanilla  that  he  assured  me  he  had 
planted.  I  examined  them,  and  pronounced  them  likely  to  live. 
I  happened  to  know  that  we  had  already  passed  over  his  line 
into  the  property  of  another  man.  I  thought  it  inhuman  to  carry 
my  vanilla-hunt  any  farther,  and  "was  fully  satisfied." 


398  NEW  GRANADA. 

We  looked  at  another  spot  where  he  thinks  the  water  brack- 
ish. Salt  is  very  high  here,  being  brought  a  little  over  300  miles 
on  the  backs  of  mules.  It  is  only  given  to  fatting  cattle.  Cha- 
queral  is  a  hacienda  for  fatting  bulls.  They  are  bought  for  6 
to  8  dollars  each  at  the  age  of  3  to  4  years,  subjected  to  the  req- 
uisite surgery,  and  with  six  months  of  Guinea-grass  and  salt 
are  ready  for  slaughter.  There  are  but  two  cultivated  grasses 
here,  Guinea-grass  and  Para.  These  pastures  only  are  fenced. 
Brackish  water  here  would  be  a  fortune.  I  have  often  helped 
hunt  for  it,  but  I  have  never  been  sure  that  any  contained  chlor- 
ide of  sodium. 

On  our  return,  we  found  that  a  gentleman  from  the  next  ha- 
cienda had  called.  I  saw  him  here  often  at  other  times.  He 
plays  cards  there  with  the  ladies,  makes  himself  agreeable,  and, 
as  he  is  a  bachelor,  he  may  yet  make  Miss  Isabel  happy.  I  call 
him  Don  Justo,  without  troubling  the  reader  with  a  surname. 

Belisario  Cabal  "is  a  taxidermist.  He  setup  and  presented 
to  the  National  Museum  of  Bogota  many,  if  not  most  of  the 
ornithological  specimens  there."  I  suggested  that  they  would 
be  more  appreciated  by  the  New  York  Lyceum — a  worthy  in- 
stitution, that,  at  the  expense  of  a  few  excellent  business-men 
and  literary  gentlemen,  has  gathered  quite  a  museum,  which 
they  keep  open  to  the  public  gratuitously  whenever  they  have 
funds  to  procure  chambers  for  the  invaluable  collection.  He 
promises  to  send  them  some  birds.  When  he  does,  if  yet  this 
book  survive  to  another  edition,  I  hereby  promise  to  remove  all 
my  vanilla  from  Chaqueral  to  some  other  place,  and  say  nothing 
about  the  cultivated  plants. 

I  went  once  to  Chaqueral  on  purpose  for  a  swim  with  the 
ladies.  There  is  a  deep  spot — charco — in  a  stream  (I  shall  not 
tell  you  where  it  is),  that  is  so  long  that  it  is  called  el  Credo — 
the  Creed.  The  Creed,  I  believe,  is  the  longest  office  in  the  ro- 
sary, and  the  extraordinary  length  of  this  deep,  still  water  gave 
it  the  name.  It  is,  in  fact,  a  dozen  rods  long,  with  an  average 
depth  of  three  feet,  and  an  almost  uniform  width  of  five  or  six. 
It  is  embowered  in  deep  woods,  and  bathed  with  the  coolest  air 
of  a  perpetual  summer.  Were  man  born  only  to  swim,  his  Eden 
would  have  been  here. 

To  our  party  for  the  Credo,  besides  Seiiora  Cabal,  Isabel,  and 


A   SWIMMING  PAKTY.  399 

Virginia,  was  added  Don  Justo,  a  lady  who  was  first  married 
about  three  years  since,  and  her  daughter,  a  simple,  not  very- 
captivating  girl  of  about  16. 

As  we  were  riding  there,  Isabel  asks  if  my  horse  can  not  pace. 
I  think  so,  though  now  on  an  easy  trot.  She  advises  me  to 
draw  in  the  reins  and  whip  him  up.  A  pace  results,  but  she 
decides  that  it  is  not  spontaneous,  but  learned.  Afterward  she 
asks  me  if  I  did  not  speak  last  night  of  having  come  on  a  horse. 
Doubtless  I  did,  since  I  rode  neither  mule,  donkey,  nor  bull. 
She  informs  me  that  it  is  a  mare,  and  that  she  is  with  foal.  I 
mentally  conclude  that  I  never  would  try  to  cheat  her  in  a  horse- 
trade. 

Our  horses  are  at  length  tied  to  trees  near  the  Credo.  Justo 
has  brought  with  him  no  bathing-dress  but  a  handkerchief.  As 
he  sees  me  differently  provided,  he  decides  not  to  go  in  at  all. 
The  mothers  likewise  do  not  go  in.  The  Senoritas  appear  in 
long  robes,  open  a  little  on  the  back,  but  quite  as  appropriate  as 
any  thing  not  "  Bloomer"  can  be.  The  stranger-girl  can  not 
swim.  Justo  and  the  mothers,  seated  on  the  rock,  chat  and 
watch  us.  We  spatter  them  a  little. 

I  was  dressed  before  the  others  left  the  water.  I  was  talking 
with  Virginia  as  she  was  combing  her  hair  preparatory  to  dress- 
ing. At  length  Justo  calls  me  to  him,  while  I  am  sitting  there 
with  my  back  to  her.  He  kindly  tells  me  it  is  not  pleasant  to 
a  lady  to  have  a  gentleman  so  near  her  when  dressing.  So  we 
stand  there  talking  with  our  faces  toward  her,  and  not  four  rods 
off,  till  she  and  the  others  are  ready  to  ride.  Truly  etiquette  is 
mystery. 

It  is  with  great  reluctance  that  I  leave  the  family  of  Seiior 
Gamba.  But,  before  I  go,  Isabel  must  show  me  her  garden.  A 
space  twenty  feet  by  eight  is  inclosed  with  slats  of  guaduas 
seven  feet  long,  placed  on  end.  Four  of  them  are  loose,  so  that 
they  can  be  partly  taken  out,  and  make  a  hole  large  enough  for 
a  sheep  to  walk  through.  Here  we  creep  in.  The  most  inter- 
esting article  I  find  is  five  stalks  of  wheat  thirty  inches  high. 
I  think  she  will  get  five  heads  of  wheat  in  harvest-time,  but  not 
of  a  very  good  quality.  This  experiment  proves  nothing.  This 
is  poor  from  other  circumstances  than  a  climate  naturally  un- 
favorable. A  large  crop  might  fail  from  reasons  that  may  not 


400  NEW   GRANADA. 

affect  this.  It  is  said  that  wheat  has  grown  in  places  of  this 
altitude,  till  pests,  animal  or  vegetable,  incapable  of  existing  in 
colder  places,  had  so  multiplied  upon  it  as  to  render  it  unprofit- 
able. But  I  am  spending  a  great  while  in  so  very  small  a 
garden. 

We  return  to  Las  Lajas,  and  go  straight  across  the  road  to 
the  river.  Dry  land  approaches  nearer  the  river  here  than  in 
any  other  place  I  know  of.  A  shout  to  a  sugar-mill  opposite, 
and  the  use  of  a  friend's  name,  brings  over  a  canoe  for  a  gratu- 
itous ferriage.  We  wish  to  visit  the  Hacienda  of  La  Vega. 
Here  we  see  the  Cauca  at  the  lowest  point  I  have  ever  seen  it 
below  the  mouth.  I  have  never  seen  it  except  at  ferries  and  at 
Vijes,  so  completely  is  it  protected  by  morasses.  It  may  here 
be  from  a  quarter  to  half  a  mile  wide,  and  identical  in  appear- 
ance with  the  upper  Magdalena  and  the  Missouri,  a  river  of 
dilute  mud. 

Three  plants  fixed  my  attention  in  a  short  walk  above  the 
ferry.  Here  alone  I  have  seen  the  yuca  in  blossom.  It  was 
nearly  three  feet  high,  with  a  spreading  top,  and  rather  pretty, 
smooth  leaves.  Next  was  the  almendron,  Attalea  amygdalina 
— a  palm  with  scarce  any  stem,  so  that  its  head  seemed  to  rest 
on  the  ground.  In  the  centre  of  a  great  crown  of  leaves  was  a 
mass  of  fruits,  a  spatha  crowded  with  nuts.  The  kernel  resem- 
bles the  almond  very  much,  only  it  is  firmer  in  the  texture,  and 
I  did  not  perceive  any  taste  of  Prussic  acid.  Next  I  came  into 
a  thicket  of  jiraca.  The  leaves  are  sold  off  the  ground  from  this 
thicket,  so  as  to  be  a  profitable  article  of  cultivation. 

I  can  not  tell  how  I  came  to  the  cane-mill  of  La  Vega,  so  I 
will  tell  you  whom  I  found  there.  First,  there  was  the  owner, 
Don  Ramon  Gonzalez,  his  wife,  Rita  Pinto  de  Gonzalez,  her  sis- 
ter, Reyes  Pinto,  and  too  many  little  ones  to  count.  They  have 
come  down  here  for  a  campaign  of  making  dulces  of  various 
kinds,  particularly  alfandoque.  They  tell  me  they  are  all  through, 
and  I  have  come  in  very  good  season,  as  in  an  hour  they  would 
have  started  home. 

My  horse  has  barely  rested  from  his  fatiguing  swim  when  we 
mount — that  is,  as  many  of  us  as  there  are  animals  for.  Each 
horse  carries  an  adult  and  a  child,  and  when  the  horses  are  all 
occupied,  there  remain  on  foot  only  the  proprietor,  his  wife,  and 


KICH  AND  COMFORTLESS.  401 

their  babe.  Said  babe  was  naked  when  I  came  upon  them,  but 
in  compliment  to  me,  I  suppose,  they  put  on  her  a  thin  calico 
dress.  I  am  much  surprised  that  they,  in  particular,  should  be 
left  on  foot,  but  they  tell  me  that  it  is  not  far  that  they  have  to 
walk — about  a  mile,  in  fact. 

My  share  of  the  burden  was  little  Dolores,  a  girl  of  five. 
They  generally  called  her  La  Mona — the  monkey — so  that  for 
a  long  time  I  knew  her  by  no  other  name.  Even  now  I  am  not 
sure  that  I  have  it  right.  The  little  creature  had  been  in  per- 
petual motion,  and,  once  on  horseback,  dropped  immediately 
asleep. 

We  at  length  come  to  the  road  from  Cartago  to  Roldanillo, 
and  then  to  a  house.  It  belongs  to  Don  Ramon,  but  he  lives 
two  miles  farther  on.  This  house  is  the  residence  of  his  wife's 
father,  Senor  Pinto,  her  sister  Reyes,  and  several  little  children 
that  I  have  not  counted,  Reyes  is  unmarried,  and  these  chil- 
dren are  all  accidental. 

The  house  consists  of  two  cottages,  with  a  space  between 
them  for  a  patio.  It  is  dusk,  and  we  sit  there  in  preference. 
Nothing  is  said  about  dinner,  probably  because  it  would  be 
idle  conversation,  there  being  nothing  whereon  any  speculation 
could  be  based,  nor  in  which  it  would  result.  I  assure  you  sucli 
things  are  forgotten  here  with  very  little  inconvenience.  It  is 
all  a  notion  that  two  good  meals  a  day  at  least  are  essential  to 
health  and  happiness.  Many  are  the  days  that  I  have  taken 
nothing  after  breakfast  but  a  single  small  cup  of  thick  choco- 
late, a  ripe,  roasted  plantain,  a  saucer  of  molasses,  brown  sugar, 
or  preserves,  and  then  a  drink  of  water,  and  have  done  very  well. 
So  I  did  this  evening,  sitting  on  a  pile  of  jipijapa  leaves,  which 
I  preferred  to  the  bare  ground,  in  company  with  the  two  ladies 
and  their  various  children,  legitimate  and  otherwise. 

Don  Ramon  had  gone  to  La  Vega,  and  brought  back  with 
him  a  bundle  of  letters  for  me.  It  will  illustrate  the  result  of 
a  combination  of  all  sorts  of  obstacles  to  the  free  transit  of  let- 
ters to  state  that  I  then  learned  the  death  of  a  sister  that  I  sup- 
posed was  in  usual  health.  She  had  been  dead  363  days. 

Senor  Gonzalez  and  family  went  early  next  morning  to  La 
Yega.  I  should  describe  it  as  two  cabins  standing  in  a  sheep- 
fold.  The  front  yard  was,  in  fact,  occupied  by  a  considerable 

Co 


402  NEW  GRANADA. 

flock  of  sheep,  and  the  corrector  served  them  for  hovel.  No  at- 
tempt was  made  to  keep  it  clean,  for  it  would  be  useless  unless 
other  lodgings  were  assigned  to  the  sheep.  Within  was  an  ab- 
sence of  comfort  that  was  very  striking  in  a  man  of  so  much 
foresight,  intelligence,  and  wealth  as  Don  Ramon.  He  is  an  in- 
valuable officer  in  the  district,  a  clear-sighted,  enterprising  man. 
His  business  is  prosperous,  and  he  has  as  much  money  as  he 
can  well  invest.  He  is  no  miser,  but  spends  freely  whenever  he 
has  occasion. 

Yet,  besides  his  kitchen,  his  whole  house  is  three  small  rooms 
with  earth  floors.  The  sala  is  12  feet  square.  It  has  a  poyo 
running  all  round,  two  heavy,  coarse  arm-chairs,  that  belonged 
to  his  grandfather,  General  Gonzalez,  and  an  immovable  table, 
made  by  fastening  a  board  30  inches  long  and  18  wide  on  the 
tops  of  four  stakes  driven  into  the  ground.  It  is  conveniently 
located  in  a  corner,  so  that  the  poyo  may  serve  as  seat  at  one 
side  and  one  end.  Hence  two  chairs  are  all  that  are  needed, 
and  he  has  no  more  in  the  house.  His  bed-room  is  12  feet  by 
7.  Two  shelves,  7  feet  by  4,  and  2  feet  from  the  ground,  are 
the  beds.  In  the  remaining  four  feet  hangs  a  frame  in  which 
the  babe  sleeps.  She  can  thus  be  swung  by  the  occupants  of 
either  bed.  The  opposite  room  contains  saddles,  boxes,  etc., 
and  is  a  general  receptacle  for  things  not  in  immediate  use. 

The  oldest  girl,  Mercedes,  comes  home  from  school  at  Rol- 
danillo.  She  is  about  eight,  and  Elena,  who  comes  with  us 
from  the  sugar-works,  six.  So  they  have  four  children,  all 
girls.  Mercedes  is  a  cordial,  sociable  child.  I  wished  to  hear 
her  read,  but  there  was  nothing  in  the  house  for  her  to  read. 
They  have  a  house  in  Roldanillo,  and  all  their  books  are  there. 
Elena  is  shy,  strong-tempered,  and  unfriendly.  La  Mona,  on 
the  other  hand,  becomes  my  friend  at  once — is  never  so  happy 
as  when  in  the  hammock  with  me.  The  sala  has  that  conven- 
iency  always  swinging,  a  seat  by  day,  my  bed  at  night.  Or- 
dinary guests  sleep  on  the  poyo,  or  on  a  hide  on  the  floor,  for 
he  has  not  a  table  large  enough  to  sleep  on. 

As  I  have  an  F  in  my  name,  it  is  supposed,  of  course,  that 
it  is  Francisco.  It  is  quite  a  relief  for  me  to  have  a  name  that 
every  body  can  pronounce — a  luxury,  in  fact.  I  wish  I  had 
borrowed  a  good  name  before  I  left  home  to  use  here.  As  I 


NEGLECT   OF  FRUIT.  403 

am  hunting  flowers  with  the  children,  I  injudiciously  mention 
that  I  do  not  like  the  name  of  Mercedes,  as  it  is  plural — mer- 
cies. Mercedes  does  not  like  the  name  of  Francisco.  She  is 
nonsuited  by  being  informed  that  my  name  is  not  Francisco, 
and  is  eager  to  learn  what  it  is,  in  order  not  to  like  that.  She 
will  never  find  out.  Still,  she  likes  me  and  I  her,  but  we  do 
not  like  each  other's  names. 

Our  little  table  is  large  enough.  There  are  but  two  to  eat  at 
it.  Rita  and  the  children  eat  on  the  floor  of  the  back  corredor. 
I  miss  something  at  these  meals,  and  more  than  the  cookery  is 
at  fault. 

The  want  of  fruit  is  a  great  privation.  Practically,  fruit  here 
reduces  itself  to  ripe  plantains,  bananas,  and  oranges.  Ripe 
plantains  are  a  necessity  to  me.  I  meet  bananas  about  once  a 
month,  and  have  eaten  as  many  as  ten  at  once.  Not  half  the 
oranges  are  fit  to  eat.  Though  the  best  oranges  in  the  world 
can  be  raised  here,  I  do  not  know  of  a  good  orange-tree  between 
here  and  Ibague.  Don  Ramon  owns  four  houses  and  some  thou- 
sands of  acres  of  the  best  land  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  on  which 
nine  tenths  of  the  fruits  of  the  world  would  grow,  and  I  do  not 
know  that  he  has  a  single  tree,  bush,  vine,  or  herb  that  yields 
an  eatable  fruit  except  the  staff  of  life,  the  plantain.  Does  the 
reader  protest  that  I  am  not  keeping  probability  in  view?  I 
answer,  that,  were  I  making  up  a  character,  it  should  be  more 
natural  to  the  Anglo-Saxon,  but  I  must  put  down  things  as  I 
find  them. 

Let  us  now  look  at  the  town  residence  of  Don  Ramon  Gonza- 
lez. The  village  of  Roldanillo  stands  in  a  nook  of  the  Caldas 
chain,  or  Western  Cordillera,  below  the  mouths  of  the  La  Paila 
and  Las  Canas,  and  above  that  of  Lajas,  Hondo,  and  Micos  riv- 
ers, all  of  which  come  in  from  the  east,  and  are  variously  and 
incorrectly  laid  down  on  the  maps.  Rio  Frio  comes  out  of  the 
western  mountains,  and  empties  into  the  Cauca  above  the  vil- 
lage. The  census  tables,  which  give  the  population  of  districts 
only,  give  a  clew  to  the  comparative  size  of  villages.  With  rare 
exceptions,  the  more  populous  a  district,  the  larger  its  village. 
Thus,  Roldanillo  district,  with  a  population  of  4800,  must  have 
at  its  "  head" — cabeza  (which  is  also  the  cabecera  (capital)  of 
the  Canton  of  Roldanillo) — a  population  of  some  4000.  Here  we 


404  NEW   GRANADA. 

may  expect  physicians,  schools,  balls,  and  respectable  festivals. 
It  is  not  strange,  then,  that  the  Gonzalez  children  were  all  born 
here,  are  to  be  educated  here,  are  to  dance  here,  and  to  spend 
their  money  here. 

Indeed,  we  would  in  charity  hope  that  here  is  their  residence, 
and  that  it  is  only  occasionally  that  they  occupy  for  a  few  weeks 
the  mud  cottages  of  La  Vega.  It  is  not  so — can  not  be  so.  Don 
Ramon  has  no  faithful  mayordomo  —  overseer — as  may  some- 
times be  found  east  of  the  Quindio.  He  must  see  with  his  own 
eyes,  and  be  present  constantly,  or  every  thing  stops  and  goes 
wrong.  Still,  the  town  house  is  much  more  respectable  in  size, 
material,  and  furniture.  It  is  large  enough,  if  not  with  rooms 
enough.  It  has  but  five  rooms  indeed,  including  kitchen  and 
stable ;  but  all  these  are  spacious,  and  all,  except  the  stable,  in 
the  upper  story  of  an  adobe  house.  The  bedsteads  and  table 
are  movable,  and  as  elegant  as  might  be  expected  from  the  hands 
of  a  rough  carpenter  in  a  land  where  the  lathe  is  unknown. 

In  fact,  the  only  approximation  to  a  lathe  I  have  seen  here  is 
a  contrivance  to  make  an  object  revolve  three  or  four  times  in 
one  direction,  and  as  many  in  the  contrary. 

Don  Ramon  has  also  a  chest  of  books  here.  I  think  one  vol- 
ume has  been  added  in  his  own  day,  the  Colmena  Espanola — 
Spanish  Hive.  It  appears  to  be  a  translation  of  the  Penny  Mag- 
azine, and,  were  copies  plenty,  would  have  done  a  good  work  for 
the  rising  race.  I  did  not  see  any  book  that  I  thought  had  been 
purchased  by  his  father,  but  previous  generations  appear  to  have 
been  much  better  patrons  of  the  bookseller.  Thus  all  the  books 
had  passed  the  minimum  point,  and  age  now  only  adds  to  their 
value. 

On  the  Sabbath  I  drew  from  this  treasury  a  Latin  work  on 
Jewish  antiquities,  which,  if  compiled  from  the  knowledge  and 
traditions  of  the  Jews  in  Spain,  ought  to  have  a  peculiar  inter- 
est at  this  day.  There  was  a  rope-dancer  to  exhibit  that  even- 
ing, and,  as  all  the  rest  of  the  family  wished  to  go,  La  Mona  was 
hired  to  stay  with  me  and  a  servant  by  the  loan  of  a  pair  of 
side-combs  that  belonged  to  Mercedes.  They  were  of  tortoise 
shell,  ornamented  with  bugles.  Imagine  me,  then,  seated  at  the 
table,  with  a  tallow-candle  in  the  candlestick,  bending  over  the 
old  parchment-bound  Latin  volume,  and  resolved  to  have  a  Sab- 


LA  MONA.  405 

bath  evening  to  myself.  La  Mona  was  rightly  named :  in  mis- 
chief she  closely  approximated  the  more  quiet  of  the  monkey 
tribe.  When  the  coast  is  clear,  the  first  thing  she  does  is  to 
strip  herself  as  naked  as  any  other  monkey — except  the  side- 
combs.  Then  she  climbs  up  on  the  table,  and  seats  herself 
near  my  book.  Next,  she  takes  out  her  combs,  picks  all  the 
bugles  off  them,  gets  some  into  the  cracks  in  the  table,  and  bur- 
ies others  in  the  tallow  that  runs  down  into  the  base  of  the 
candlestick.  The  servant  has  no  authority  over  her.  Rarely 
does  the  mother  try  to  exercise  any,  though  the  child  is  not  often 
so  completely  let  loose.  Next,  she  must  play  with  the  candle. 
When  she  had  aided  my  lucubrations  over  Jewish  antiquities 
about  an  hour,  I  grew  tired,  and  told  her  if  she  took  my  candle 
again  I  would  blow  it  out.  A  moment  after  we  were  in  total 
darkness.  The  servant  offered  to  go  to  the  neighbors'  and  light 
the  candle,  but  I  told  her  to  let  it  be.  "  Come  to  me,  Monkey," 
I  said,  and  the  little  thing  snuggled  down  into  my  arms,  and  in 
five  minutes  more  was  fast  asleep.  I  rolled  her  in  a  cloth  and 
laid  her  on  a  bedstead. 

At  11  the  family  returned,  bringing  their  chairs  with  them. 
On  all  such  occasions  the  spectators  must  find  their  own  seats, 
and  it  is  so  even  in  the  theatre  of  Bogota.  Thus  closed  my 
Sabbath  in  the  family  of  Ramon  Gonzalez. 

One  day  a  boy  came  in  from  the  street  bringing  up  my  little 
Greek  Testament.  La  Mona  had  thrown  it  off  the  balcony. 
I  had  to  tie  a  string  to  it  and  hang  it  up  on  a  high  nail,  as  if  to 
put  it  out  of  the  reach  of  ants.  I  did  not  wish  her  to  play  with 
my  tooth-brush,  and  hid  it  behind  a  little  doll  tied  into  a  rock- 
ing-chair, placed  on  a  high  antique  chest  of  drawers.  The  spite- 
ful, shy  Elena  discovered  my  hiding-place,  and  proclaimed  that 
Francisco  (Fran-thees'-co)  had  put  his  little  brush  in  the  chair 
of  the  baby-god!  What  I  had  taken  for  a  plaything  was,  then, 
an  object  of  religious  regard,  if  not  of  worship. 

Elena  was  mischievous  too.  I  was  sitting  reading  at  a  bal- 
cony one  day,  when  she  brought  forward  a  book  I  had  borrow- 
ed, and  threatened  to  throw  it  down  into  the  street.  I  told  her 
if  she  did  I  would  strike  her.  She  did  not  believe  it.  La  Mona, 
too,  had  brought  another  book,  and  at  the  same  instant  both 
threw  them  down.  I  boxed  their  ears.  A  great  outcry  was  the 


406  NEW  GRANADA. 

result.  Elena  ran  off  screaming,  and  never  came  near  me  again 
that  day  nor  the  next.  La  Mona  threw  herself  into  my  lap,  and 
sobbed  for  a  long  time,  and  would  not  leave  me  for  an  hour. 

Filial  irreverence  runs  wild  in  New  Granada.  I  have  seen  a 
girl  of  8,  the  daughter  of  a  most  respectable  and  high-spirited 
mother,  strike  her  and  call  her  the  vilest  names  known  in  any 
language,  and  that  with  impunity.  I  am  not  prepared  to  assert 
that  family  discipline  is  known  at  all  here.  Less  would  be  need- 
ed than  with  us,  by  far.  As  it  is  less  called  for,  it  is  not  so 
strange  that  it  is  in  almost  entire  disuse. 

I  visited  the  boys'  school  atRoldanillo,  but  saw  nothing  worthy 
of  remark.  I  saw  also  a  select  school  for  girls.  Select  it  was, 
for  the  number  was  only  five.  In  intellectual  advantages  this 
was  no  way  superior  to  the  average  of  public  girls'  schools,  if 
even  so  good ;  but  the  pupils  were  more  out  of  the  way  of  learn- 
ing bad  language.  The  teacher  was  the  sister  and  housekeeper 
of  Priest  Elias  Guerrero,  the  most  amiable  member  of  the  clergy 
I  have  seen  here.  He  is  without  the  charge  of  any  church.  I 
could  not  but  feel  sad  to  think  of  so  affectionate  a  brother  that 
could  never  be  a  husband ;  so  intelligent  and  worthy  a  man  ex- 
posed to  the  sins  that  are  (humanly  speaking)  inseparable  from 
forced  celibacy. 

I  staid  a  night  at  the  house  of  Padre  Elias.  He  had  to  say 
mass  the  next  morning.  I  proposed  to  accompany  him.  He  as- 
sented, only  requesting  me,  if  my  conscience  did  not  permit  me 
to  kneel  in  mass,  to  stand  where  my  nonconformity  could  not  be 
seen ;  so  I  stood  in  the  sacristy.  The  church  is  quite  a  large, 
desolate  concern,  not  over  rich  in  pictures  and  statues ;  but  it  has 
an  organ.  I  went  up  to  try  it.  A  man  tried  to  blow  it,  but  it 
would  take  two  men  to  do  it ;  and  you  could  find  no  two  pipes 
in  harmony  in  it;  such  a  shrieking,  growling,  squalling,  and 
squealing  as  it  made  was  almost  diabolic. 

After  breakfast  Senor  Guerrero  went  to  work  examining  a 
peculiar  book,  that  had  been  made  by  adding  leaf  after  leaf  of 
stamped  paper  to  a  nucleus  of  two  or  three  sheets  with  which 
it  had  begun.  It  was  a  criminal  trial — proceso.  A  man  had 
been  charged  with  some  crime,  and  had  been  denounced.  The 
denunciation  was  page  1.  Page  2  stated  that  he  was  not  guilty. 
Page  3  was  from  the  juez  letradro  del  circuito  —  the  circuit 


CBIMINAL  TRIALS.  407 

judge — ordering  the  judge  of  the  first  instance  to  take  the  evi- 
dence of  A,  B,  C,  and  D.  These  made  up  documents  4,  5,  6, 
and  7.  No.  8  was  from  the  accused,  demanding  that  some  one 
be  assigned  as  his  counsel,  as  he  was  too  poor  to  employ  a  doc- 
tor of  laws.  No.  9  was  from  the  judge  of  the  first  instance,  or- 
dering Reverend  Elias  Guerrero  to  defend  the  accused.  In  No. 
10  my  friend  had  asked  that  B  and  C  be  re-examined  on  cer- 
tain points,  and  E  and  F  examined ;  11,  12,  13,  14  contained 
the  results  of  these  examinations,  which  he  was  sewing  on  pre- 
vious to  passing  the  concretion  over  to  the  personero,  or  prose- 
cuting attorney  of  the  province  of  Buenaventura. 

If  it  shall  seem  to  the  personero  that  the  case  is  made  up,  he 
will  demand,  in  No.  15,  an  interview  at  a  proper  time  between 
the  juez  letradro,  the  accused,  his  defender,  six  jurors — jurados 
(sworn  men) — and  himself,  in  which  these  documents  will  all 
be  read,  and  the  case  argued.  We  may  then  hope  that  No.  16 
will  contain  the  vote  of  a  majority  of  the  jury,  and  No.  17  the 
sentence  of  the  judge. 

Such  is  the  outline  of  the  French,  Spanish,  and  Granadan  pro- 
cess, as  it  seems  to  me.  It  is  much  more  dangerous  to  men  of 
bad  character  than  our  blessed  English  system,  which  yields  a 
more  perfect  protection  to  the  criminal  than  any  other  ever  in- 
vented. I  tried  to  describe  our  process  to  him,  but  I  fear  that 
he  did  not  believe  all  I  said. 

"In  the  first  place,  we  catch  the  accused." 

"  But  if  you  can  not  catch  him,  what  then  ?" 

"  Why,  of  course,  then  we  do  not  try  him." 

"Why  not?" 

"  He  might  not  have  a  fair  trial  if  he  were  not  present." 

"  Well,  give  him  fair  notice,  then,  and  if  he  thinks  it  better 
to  be  present,  let  him  come.  Do  you  never  catch  men  that  you 
find  you  have  no  occasion  for?  And  would  it  not  have  been 
better  if  they  had  been  tried  before  sending  off  to  a  distance  to 
bring  them  home,  if  they  did  not  want  to  come  ?" 

"  That  may  be  ;  but  it  is  contrary  to  our  theory  (founded  on 
an  old  law-book,  I  believe,  called  Madre  Vidrio — Mother  Glass) 
that  the  man  must  be  first  caught  and  then  tried.  Next  after 
catching  him  is  to  bail  him."  ^ 

"But  suppose  he  has  stolen  $100,000?" 


408  NEW   GRANADA. 

"Then  we  demand  security  in  the  sum  of  $40,000  or  less. 
Excessive  bail  is  unconstitutional ;  and  a  bail  of  as  great  an 
amount  as  he  has  stolen  would  be  more  than  he  could  get,  there- 
fore it  would  be  excessive." 

"  But  if  he  gives  his  bail  $40,000  of  the  stolen  money,  and 
then  runs  away  ?" 

"  Then  the  bail  moves  heaven  and  earth  to  have  the  security 
reduced  to  $5000,  which  he  pays  into  the  treasury,  and  gains 
$35,000  by  the  operation." 

"  And  the  man  who  was  robbed  ?" 

"  Why,  he  revenges  himself  by  having  the  thief  arrested 
again,  if  he  can  catch  him." 

"If?" 

"  But,  generally,  he  will  not  run  away.  The  danger  of  con- 
viction is  not  so  great  as  to  justify  it ;  for  12  men  must  be  unan- 
imous in  his  conviction,  and  they  must  walk  together  without 
stumbling  over  a  path  bristling  with  law-points  planted  by  skill- 
ful counsel.  Acquitting  men  has  been  reduced  with  us  to  a  sci- 
ence. A  man  can  make  but  fair  wages  at  getting  others  con- 
demned, but  he  may  even  get  $10,000  at  a  single  job  for  getting 
a  man  clear." 

"Caramba!" 

"A  celebrated  advocate,  Henry  Clay,  is  said  never  once  in  his 
life  to  have  failed  in  clearing  his  man,  even  when  charged  with 
murder.  Consider  what  a  fool  a  man  would  be  in  spending 
§40,000  in  bail,  and  risk  being  caught  again,  when  he  could  re- 
tain Henry  Clay  for  one  quarter  of  that  sum,  and,  after  being 
acquitted,  live  respectably  among  his  old  neighbors,  and  die  hap- 
py in  the  house  where  he  was  born." 

"Verdad!" 

"  But  the  Boston  people  have  carried  the  matter  farthest. 
Once  Boston  had  a  bad  name  for  hard  usage  of  criminals.  Peo- 
ple of  other  states  were  horrified  by  the  hanging  of  a  man  of 
good  family  for  murder,  when  they  could  see  beautiful  chances 
of  getting  him  clear  that  were  idly  suffered  to  pass.  Since  then 
they  have  made  their  jurors  judges  of  law  as  well  as  of  fact, 
and  the  consequence  is  that  their  juries  hang  on  the  slightest 
cause." 

"  Hang  the  accused  ?" 


GENTLENESS  WITH  MALEFACTORS.      4Q9 

"  No,  indeed.  They  are  unable  to  agree,  and  are  discharged. 
A  new  trial  is  ordered.  Not  a  word  of  the  old  trial  will  an- 
swer. All  the  witnesses  must  be  heard  again,  and  if  a  material 
one  should  die,  or  happen  to  become  an  engineer  on  a  Russian 
railroad,  the  trial  must  go  on  without  him,  and  the  accused  be 
acquitted." 

"Well,  your  Union  must  be  a  paradise  for  malefactors.  I 
no  longer  wonder  at  the  desperadoes  that  keep  our  isthmus  in  a 
perpetual  terror." 

"  Yes  ;  but  I  have  not  told  you  all.  The  denouncer  is  some- 
times called  on  to  give  bail  as  well  as  the  denounced.  For  in- 
stance, a  mate  of  a  ship  maltreats  a  sailor.  Jack  complains, 
and  is  locked  up  as  a  witness.  The  mate  gives  bail.  The  hot 
season  comes  on — hotter  than  in  Tocaima.  For  fifteen  long 
hours  in  a  day  the  sun  beats  on  the  prison  where  the  witness 
is  shut  up,  but  the  mate  is  not  ready  for  trial.  He  is  drinking 
ice-water,  and  at  some  genteel  employment  on  shore.  After  the 
trial,  the  witness,  who  has  been  shut  up  six  months,  is  set  at 
large,  and  the  criminal  is  condemned  to  be  shut  up  in  a  better 
cell  six  weeks." 

"  Vaya  !  you  are  joking — usted  se  chancea." 

"  Not  at  all.  I  had  my  overcoat  stolen,  and,  in  a  moment 
of  consummate  folly,  I  told  the  police.  Fortunately,  the  thief 
never  was  discovered.  Had  he  been  caught,  the  time  I  should 
have  been  compelled  to  spend  hanging  about  a  court-room  would 
have  been  worth  to  me  more  than  two  overcoats." 

I  can  not  give  the  rest  of  our  conversation.  I  own  that  I  ut- 
terly failed  to  make  the  priest  understand  the  superiority  of  our 
system  to  theirs  :  such  is  prejudice.  The  most  degraded  of  our 
population  at  home  can  see  it  at  once. 

Their  civil  suits  have  much  more  resemblance  to  those  of  the 
New  Code  of  New  York  and  other  States  than  to  our  criminal 
processes.  The  demanda  is  handed  by  the  plaintiff  to  the  judge, 
and  by  him  served  on  the  respondent.  There  are  three  classes 
of  cases,  one  below  $16,  and  one  above  $200 ;  and  the  lower  the 
class,  the  more  expeditious  the  process. 

The  questions  of  delay  must  first  be  adjusted,  and  then  it  is 
decided  whether  there  are  facts  at  issue.  Only  in  this  last  is 
there  a  delay  in  the  decision.  The  evidence  is  taken  by  the 


410  NEW   GRANADA. 

judge,  and  is  secret,  though  each  party  is  made  acquainted  with 
all  applications  for  evidence  made  by  the  other.  When  the 
term  of  proving  has  expired,  either  party  can  demand  publica- 
tion of  proofs,  and  each  then  sees  the  evidence  collected  for  the 
other.  Then  the  parties  are  heard,  and  the  judge  decides  the 
case. 

In  cases  of  less  than  $16  there  is  no  appeal.  In  sums  of 
over  $200  the  case  may  go  up  to  the  supreme  court  of  the  na- 
tion, but  the  appeal  must  be  based  on  nullity  of  the  previous 
sentence,  or  notorious  injustice. 

As  a  whole,  promptness  before  accuracy  seems  to  be  the 
motto  in  their  civil  causes.  They  have  a  notion  that  a  man 
might  as  well  lose  a  just  cause  at  the  end  of  a  week  as  gain  it 
at  the  close  of  the  next  century,  when  all  the  parties  are  dead, 
and  the  costs  have  eaten  up  all  the  property  of  plaintiff  and  de- 
fendant. Our  happier  system  prefers  that  a  case  be  kept  up 
till  the  close  of  the  millennium  rather  than  it  be  decided  irrev- 
ocably wrong. 

It  was  at  this  priest's  table  that  I  learned  to  eat  the  Avocado 
pear,  Alligator  pear,  Persea  gratissima,  here  known  as  aguacate, 
and  in  Bogota  as  la  cura,  feminine  (but  el  cura,  masculine,  is 
the  parish  priest).  This  fruit  was  more  difficult  to  master  than 
any  other  I  ever  met  with  except  the  tomato.  I  now  discov- 
ered that  when  I  had  in  my  mouth  a  piece  of  meat  already  mas- 
ticated, a  particle  of  aguacate  made  a  very  nice  sauce  to  it.  The 
moment  I  began  to  understand  it  as  a  vegetable  gravy,  I  had 
little  difficulty;  at  length  I  relished  it  with  a  little  salt  only. 
Now  it  is,  perhaps,  the  only  fruit  that  is  absolutely  unreplace- 
able  at  the  North. 

Roldanillo  has  a  cocoanut-tree  too.  The  nuts  are  sold  at  a 
dime  each  at  the  foot  of  the  tree.  Cocoanuts  would  grow  well 
any  where  in  this  part  of  the  Valley  of  the  Cauca,  but  they  have 
never  been  planted.  You  can  not  expect  a  good  supply  of  fruit 
in  a  new  country,  and  this  has  not  been  settled  much  over  300 
years  by  the  white  race. 

From  Roldanillo  I  had  arranged  to  go  to  Libraida  or  Zarzal, 
directly  across  the  river.  I  parted  with  the  good  priest  with  no 
little  regret,  and  bade  a  final  adieu  to  La  Mona  with  still  more. 
I  had  taken  leave  of  them  all,  and  was  already  at  the  head  of 


SWIMMING  THE  CAUCA.  411 

the  stairs  in  the  corrector,  when  the  dear  little  monkey  caught 
me  by  the  leg,  and  declared  that  I  must  not  go.  She  is  an  ex- 
ception to  Granadan  children,  for  there  are  few  of  them  that  I 
think  know  much  what  it  is  to  love  or  be  loved.  I  have  met 
no  other  like  her,  and  she  seems  rather  of  a  Northern  race. 

For  some  distance  the  road  to  the  river  has  a  spur  of  mount- 
ains on  the  right.  A  road  at  length  turns  up  the  river  toward 
Cali,  and  you,  as  you  leave  it,  enter  the  low,  rich  bottom-lands, 
little,  if  any,  above  high-water  mark.  It  is  now  tne  dry  season, 
but  the  road  is  not  free  from  mud.  In  company  with  me  was 
a  gentleman  and  a  dependant,  who  served  as  companion  and 
servant.  We  had  to  wait  for  him  for  some  time,  and  lost  our 
way  once  before  turning  down  to  the  ferry. 

My  friend  and  I  determined  to  swim  the  river,  leaving  the  at- 
tendant and  horses  to  cross  by  the  boat.  The  horses  swam  fast- 
er than  we  did,  and  well  it  was  for  us.  They  had  not  touched 
shore  when  my  friend  was  shouting  for  help.  It  was,  indeed, 
quite  a  swim,  the  longest  I  have  ever  taken  except  in  the  Mis- 
sissippi. I  judge  it  between  a  quarter  and  half  a  mile.  It  is  said 
to  fatigue  horses  more  than  a  day's  journey.  If  so,  men  can 
swim  better  than  horses,  for  I  felt  no  effects  from  my  exertions, 
and  my  friend  was  also  near  the  shore  when  the  boat  picked 
him  up. 

To  reach  the  solid,  dry  ground  of  the  eastern  banda  was  one 
of  the  worst  rides  I  ever  saw.  The  very  bank  was  dry,  but  soon 
the  road  plunged  into  a  morass,  where  it  broke  into  numerous 
paths,  all,  however,  so  deep  with  mud  as  to  cover  a  large  part 
of  the  body  of  the  horse.  I  consider  the  mud  a  more  serious 
obstacle  than  the  river ;  what  it  would  be  in  the  wet  season  I 
dare  not  conjecture.  At  length  it  became  drier ;  some  grass  be- 
came visible  in  glades  between  the  trees,  and  at  last  we  reached 
the  little  village  of  Libraida. 


412  NEW  GRANADA. 


CHAPTER  XXVHL 

GRAZIER  LIFE. 

Libraida. — Priest — Partial  Hospitality. — Impediment  to  Chnrch-going. — Noon- 
day-ball.— The  Priest's  Partner. — Utility  of  Hurrahs. — Dinner. — Duck-pull- 
ing.— Beheading  Cocks. — A  Spring. — A  Ride  with  Company. — La  Paila. — 
Mortmain  and  ecclesiastical  Incumbrances. — Herding.  —  The  Lazo.  —  Colt- 
breaking. — Breeding  of  Colts  and  Mules. — The  Bull-fishery. — Bull-driving. 

ENTERING  Libraida,  I  rode  at  once  to  the  house  of  the  priest. 
I  had  seen  him  before,  and  often  since,  but  this  time  he  was  away 
from  home.  The  first  time  I  called  on  him  was  at  noon  of  a 
warm  day,  the  1st  of  February.  I  was  in  company  with  my 
friends  of  Tulua,  Don  Eladio  Vargas,  his  wife,  and  her  sister. 
Padre  Duran  is  their  friend,  and  I  was  indebted  to  them  for  an 
introduction. 

Introduction,  strictly  speaking,  there  was  none.  He  saw  at 
once  that  I  was  a  foreigner,  and  I  was  soon  informed  that  he  was 
a  priest.  He  brought  forward  aguardiente.  Eladio  drank,  the 
ladies  tasted,  or  pretended  to,  and  I  declined  with  thanks.  Then 
cake,  made  of  yuca-root,  was  offered  to  the  ladies  only,  and  they 
ate.  I  had  seen  this  partiality  in  offering  refreshments  once  only 
before.  Next  came  a  coal  in  a  spoon,  and  a  handful  of  cigars. 
Susana  and  Manuela  do  not  smoke  unless  secretly ;  they  took 
the  cigars,  but  declined  the  fire. 

At  a  later  call  there  I  found  him  teaching  a  boys'  school,  and 
at  the  close  he  went  to  baptize  a  child  in  the  church.  It  is 
one  of  the  poorest  I  have  seen,  having  but  two  altars,  and  a  mis- 
erable apology  for  a  pulpit  (never  used,  I  think),  and  a  floor  of 
earth.  I  was  about  to  enter,  when  an  unsuspected  obstacle  pre- 
vented. I  had  on  a  pair  of  zamarras,  and  they  can  never  cross 
the  threshold  of  a  church.  I  wondered  at  that,  as  it  was  the 
only  Christian  thing  I  had  on,  every  thread  of  my  clothing  be- 
ing heretic,  as  well  as  the  body  within  them.  But  so  it  was ; 
all  might  come  in  but  them.  Smoking  in  church  is  in  violation 
of  the  same  principle. 


DAY  BALL  AND  FEAST.  413 

But  now  I  find  the  priest  at  Una-gato  (cat-claw),  the  name  of 
a  bush  with  formidable  hooked  spines,  that  thus  gives  its  name 
to  a  neighborhood  in  this  district.  I  unexpectedly  met  an  ac- 
quaintance going  there,  and  no  wonder ;  for  to-day,  29th  June,  is 
the  day  of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul,  and  the  Unagatenos  are  cel- 
ebrating the  day.  Our  course  was  south,  and  our  road  lay  be- 
tween the  highway  and  the  river.  But  it  always  seems  as  if 
you  were  in  the  highway,  and  that  the  little  cleared  land  in  sight 
of  you  was  all  that  lay  between  the  river  forest  and  that  of  the 
mountains.  A  succession  of  glades  and  bosques,  and  a  stream 
or  two,  brought  us  to  a  knoll  or  ridge,  much  nearer  the  river 
than  ridges  usually  are,  and  perhaps  not  a  mile  from  it.  Here 
were  two  or  three  cabins  of  peasantry,  and  in  one  of  them  we 
found  the  ball. 

Just  as  I  entered,  the  priest  was  dancing  with  the  prettiest 
girl  that  I  have  seen  in  these  parts.  So  thought  others,  for  one 
suggested,  "Viva  the  Cura's  partner!"  and  in  return  came  a 
scattering  volley  of  vivas.  Cheering  simultaneously  with  three 
hurrahs,  or  three  times  three,  is  unknown  here.  It  is  a  pity.  I 
think  a  great  deal  of  the  efficiency  of  an  Anglo-Saxon  mob  de- 
pends on  lusty  simultaneous  cheering,  hence  we  are  unequaled 
in  this  democratic  branch  of  our  government  by  any  nation  on 
earth.  A  bochinche,  of  persons  ten  times  more  highly  excited, 
has  none  of  the  deep  power  of  a  mob  that  has  drunk  plentifully, 
and  feels  its  strength  and  unanimity  in  the  thunder  of  three 
cheers. 

But  I  wander.  "  The  Cura's  partner"  was  dressed  as  a  lady, 
as  were  five  or  six  others.  The  rest  of  the  fair  sex  were  in  ca- 
misa  and  enaguas  only.  The  room  was  densely  filled,  and  it 
was  as  an  act  of  courtesy  that  I  gained  admission.  Judge  my 
surprise  when  I  saw  the  pious  and  queenly  Elodia  Vargas  there. 
She  is  on  a  visit  in  the  district.  I  shall  not  speak  of  the  dan- 
cing, as  we  shall  see  it  again,  and  more  at  leisure. 

Soon  we  were  notified  that  dinner  was  ready.  We  moved 
to  another  house.  Under  the  piazza  of  this,  a  narrow,  long  ta- 
ble had  been  set,  so  that  the  ladies,  sitting  next  the  house  on  a 
barbacoa,  or  immovable  bench  of  guadua,  were  in  the  shade, 
while  we  of  the  tougher  sex  sat  under  a  vertical  sun,  but  little 
incommoded  with  the  heat.  We  had  an  awkward  dinner.  The 


NEW   GRANADA. 

meats  were  abundant,  the  plates  sufficient,  but  the  sum  of  the 
knives,  spoons,  and  forks  exceeded  the  guests  at  the  table  by 
but  one  or  two.  The  ladies  refused  to  eat  with  their  fingers. 
To  me  had  fallen  both  a  knife  and  a  fork.  Where  much  is  given 
much  is  required.  I  spent  the  whole  dinner  cutting  meat  into 
mouthfuls,  of  which  few  indeed  fell  to  my  own  share. 

A  second  table  was  filled  with  musicians,  and  some  second- 
rate  characters,  while  the  mass  of  the  festive  crowd  either  fast- 
ed or  ate  at  the  kitchen.  What  we  call  music  consisted  essen- 
tially of  two  drums  and  a  clarinet.  They  played  while  we  ate. 
While  they  ate  we  sat  in  the  house,  and  I  tried  to  make  con- 
versation with  the  pretty  lady,  but  with  indifferent  success. 

Now  the  priest,  who  seems  to  be  Master  of  Revels  ex  ojficio, 
calls  out,  "  Bring  the  cock  and  dig  the  pot."  A  hole  was  dug 
hi  the  turf,  and  an  unfortunate  cock  interred  therein  up  to  his 
ears.  But  the  hole  is  too  shallow ;  he  rises  up  with  the  earth 
on  his  shoulders,  and  the  hole  must  be  dug  deeper.  Even  at 
last  he  was  kept  in  by  wedging  the  turf  about  him,  so  that  he 
could  not  get  up.  Meanwhile,  a  still  more  unfortunate  Mus- 
covy duck  was  suspended  by  his  feet  over  one  of  those  deep  cuts 
common  in  these  roads.  The  mode  of  suspension  was  very  im- 
perfect :  two  poles  of  guadua  set  in  the  ground  had  a  strong 
hide  rope — guasca — passed  over  their  tops,  and  poor  Muscovy 
was  fastened  in  the  middle :  the  two  poles  were  steadied  by 
two  men.  The  ladies  came  out  and  seated  themselves  on  the 
bank  to  witness  the  sport.  The  men  on  horseback  passed  un- 
der the  duck  at  full  speed,  and  endeavored  to  wrench  off  its  head. 
I  left  them  to  their  amusement  a  little  while,  and  on  my  return 
the  duck  was  dead.  Every  attempt  to  pull  off  the  head  only 
filled  the  hands  with  blood  and  feathers,  and  the  invincible  duck 
was  left  for  the  cock. 

According  to  the  rules,  a  lady  was  to  be  blindfolded,  to  take 
a  machete,  and,  if  possible,  cut  off  the  poor  bird's  head  in  three 
blows.  The  curate,  who  seemed  to  take  this  diversion  under 
his  special  patronage,  selected  for  executioner  the  most  respect- 
able and  pious  young  lady  of  the  company,  our  queenly  Elodia. 
With  much  reluctance  she  consented  to  be  blindfolded,  took  the 
machete,  went  one  step  toward  the  cock,  stopped,  and  removed 
the  handkerchief.  The  curate's  partner  in  the  last  waltz  was 


BEHEADING  THE  COCK.  415 

next  applied  to  with  much  urgency,  but  resisted.  Finally,  it 
was  voted  to  blindfold  a  man.  No  sooner  had  he  begun  to  step 
than  all  called  out,  "  You  are  going  wrong !  More  to  the  right ! 
More  to  the  left !  Strike  where  you  are !  Go  two  steps 
farther!"  And  all  this  at  once,  and  twenty  times  repeated. 
Confounded  by  this  "  advice  gratis,"  he  gave  three  sweeping 
strokes  wide  of  the  mark.  "  There  goes  his  head !"  cry  half  a 
dozen,  and  the  executioner  removes  his  bandage  amid  shouts  of 
derision,  and  sees  the  cock's  head  projecting  unharmed  between 
his  feet.  A  second  followed ;  but  my  curiosity  was  gratified,  or, 
rather,  my  endurance  exhausted,  and  I  left  the  ground  in  search 
of  plants.  As  I  mounted  my  horse  to  return,  the  remains  of 
the  second  cock  were  passed  over  the  fence  to  the  kitchen. 

The  priest,  the  ladies,  and  several  gentlemen  returned  at  the 
same  time  to  Libraida.  There  had  been  another  decollation, 
and  another  party  larger  than  ours  was  already  on  horseback. 
We  commenced  riding  round  among  the  diluvial  hills  that  diver- 
sify the  uninclosed  ground  around  the  village,  shouting  "  Viva 
San  Pedro !"  The  priest  called  out  to  me  that  I  did  not  shout. 
Thus  appealed  to,  I  ventured,  in  English,  one  good  "  Hurrah 
for  Saint  Peter !"  which  drew  a  roar  of  merriment  from  the  com- 
pany. Soon  after  we  halted  at  a  sort  of  tavern,  where  the  priest 
had  arranged  to  treat  the  company  to  milk  punch. 

A  little  northeast  of  the  town  is  a  spring,  just  west  of  the  road 
that  comes  in  from  Cartago.  It  furnishes  water  to  the  village, 
which,  unlike  all  others,  is  not  on  a  stream.  I  really  know  of 
no  other  spring  in  all  the  valley  of  the  Cauca.  In  dry  seasons 
the  streams  diminish  as  they  come  down  from  the  mountains, 
and  in  rainy  times  all  their  accessions  are  from  superficial  wa- 
ter. I  have  no  reason  to  doubt  but  that  wells  would  yield  wa- 
ter were  they  dug,  but  at  present  there  is  no  need  of  any. 

I  took  a  peep  at  the  prison  here  only  because  some  of  my 
young  Conservador  friends  were  shut  up  there  in  1851,  when  just 
too  old  to  be  whipped  by  their  mothers,  for  taking  up  arms 
against  the  government. 

A  little  before  5  I  left  for  the  Hacienda  of  La  Paila.  As 
the  gentlefolks  could  not  think  of  leaving  without  dancing  all 
night,  I  contented  myself  with  the  guidance  and  company  of  one 
or  two  wearers  of  camisa  and  enaguas  that  could  not  conven- 


416  NEW  GRANADA. 

iently  be  away  from  home  till  morning.  The  road  is  a  little  dif- 
ficult to  find,  from  the  fact  that  Libraida  does  not  stand  on  the 
real  highway,  but  west  of  it,  and  it  was  some  miles  before  we 
seemed  to  have  got  fairly  into  it.  The  open  ground,  or  mixture 
of  glade  and  bosque  is  not  continuous,  but  in  many  places  the 
forest  of  the  mountain  unites  with  that  of  the  river.  In  these 
spots  a  place  for  a  road  was  anciently  cleared,  a  dozen  rods  wide, 
and  it  is  now  grown  up  to  grass,  and  will  never  bear  another 
tree.  But  the  road  does  not  at  this  day  always  follow  these 
openings,  which  may  lead  you  upon  an  impassable  morass,  or 
a  river  with  no  road  down  the  bank.  Villages  are  just  as  like- 
ly to  be  built  off  the  former  road,  like  Libraida,  as  on  it.  The 
travel  leaves  the  theoretical  road  and  makes  ways  for  itself.  As 
no  labor  is  expended  on  the  road,  and  the  land  is  not  fenced,  no 
man  knows  what  precise  spot  is  the  legal  property  of  the  nation 
as  highway. 

We  found  some  mud.  Here  I  noticed  a  large,  beautiful  or- 
chid flower  growing  very  frequently  on  trees.  It  was  white  and 
pink.  It  is  here  called  lily  —  azucena  —  and  is  a  Cattleya. 
Strangely  enough,  I  found  on  knolls  here  a  terrestrial  orchid, 
with  a  stem  seven  feet  high,  of  a  totally  different  section  of  the 
Order,  but  with  a  flower  so  like  this  Cattleya  in  size,  shape, 
and  color,  that,  remove  the  tip  of  the  column  from  a  flower,  and 
I  could  not  tell  from  which  plant  it  had  been  taken,  while  the 
pollen,  leaves,  and  whole  habit  of  the  plants  were  as  different  as 
possible.  The  terrestrial  plant  was  Sobralia.  This  shows  that 
the  pollen  of  orchids  furnishes  a  prime  characteristic. 

At  Las  Canas  River  I  found  the  guadua  in  flower.  It  is 
strange  that  a  plant  so  common  should  flower  so  rarely.  Mu- 
tis,  who  spent  his  life  on  the  botany  of  the  country,  never  found 
it.  Caldas  found  it  once  or  twice.  I  can  not  learn  that  any 
other  botanist  has  found  it  but  myself.  I  gathered  a  large  quan- 
tity. Rio  de  Las  Canas  is  almost  always  fordable.  It  is  apt 
to  keep  about  a  foot  deep — say  a  good  mill-stream. 

Farther  on  I  came  among  low  hills,  and  in  half  a  mile  farther 
found  a  tree  Passiflora.  It  was  a  slender  tree,  but  I  had  to 
stand  erect  on  my  horse  to  cut  off  the  lowest  limb.  I  afterward 
found  another  species  that  is  a  bush,  and  there  may  be  yet  other 
passion-flowers  that  are  not  vines. 


GUADUA  BRIDGE.  417 

This  hilly  land  lasted  more  than  a  mile,  and  then  came  an 
open  plain,  of  which  we  skirted  the  eastern  edge.  It  is  called 
El  Medio.  We  shall  return  to  it  presently.  Again  we  come  to 
a  piece  of  woods,  at  the  farther  edge  of  which  flows  the  largest 
stream  we  have  passed  since  leaving  Cartago.  It  is  Rio  de  la 
Paila.  A  slender  bridge  of  guadua  has  since  been  thrown  over 
it  for  footmen.  With  some  little  risk,  I  crossed  diagonally  up 
stream.  Horses  do  not  swim  much  with  their  riders  here. 

A  guadua  bridge  is  best  built  where  a  large  tree  has  limbs 
overhanging  the  stream.  The  butts  of  many  large,  long,  slender 
guaduas,  laid  side  by  side,  are  secured  to  either  shore  with  the 
stems  reaching  upward  over  the  river.  Others  are,  if  necessary, 
spliced  upon  these,  till  the  tops  of  the  opposite  sets  can  be  bent 
down  and  interwoven  into  an  arch,  which  the  architect  may  im- 
itate with  advantage.  Of  course,  the  centre  is  much  narrower 
and  thinner  than  the  ends,  because  the  guaduas  taper  upward. 
A  floor  of  transverse  slats  of  guadua  is  tied  upon  the  arch,  a 
railing  may  be  added,  and  the  structure  made  firmer  by  vines, 
which  tie  the  bridge  to  the  branches  above.  Thus  the  whole 
bridge  is  nothing  but  grass  stems  tied  together  by  woody  vines 
— bejucos.  The  structure  requires  neither  auger,  chisel,  saw, 
nor  nail. 

Beyond  the  river  the  road  bears  to  the  west,  to  avoid  some 
very  high  hills.  We  proceeded  to  the  base  of  the  first  of  these, 
and  found  ourselves  at  the  ancient  Hacienda  de  la  Paila.  The 
chief  attraction  to  me  is  the  mistress  of  it.  I  had  met  the  Se- 
nora  Emilia  (pronounced  Amelia)  at  Chaqueral.  She  is,  I  be- 
lieve, some  relative  of  Dona  Paz,  if  not,  in  fact,  a  sister.  I  rec- 
ollect that  at  the  time  I  met  also  another  lady  of  mature  age 
there,  and  we  were  conversing  about  the  wives  and  families  of 
clergymen  in  the  United  States.  None  of  them  could  conceive 
how  a  clergyman  could  induce  a  reputable  lady  to  marry  him. 
Indeed,  they  hardly  thought  it  decent  to  defend  the  idea  of  a 
married  clergy.  I  spoke  of  the  Cura  of  Banco,  who  has  several 
children  born  every  year,  and  asked  them  whether  it  would  not 
be  better  that  he  should  be  permitted  to  have  one  good,  decent 
wife,  and  a  family  that  should  be  a  model  of  what  a  family  ought 
to  be.  The  stranger  lady  would  prefer  the  Cura  of  Banco  as 
he  is ;  for  his  sacraments  are  efficacious  now,  wicked  as  he  is, 

DD 


418  NEW   GRANADA. 

whereas,  if  married,  those  who  trusted  to  them  would  be  lost. 
Senora  Emilia  thought  somewhat  differently,  and  some  things 
she  said  raised  her  at  once  to  a  high  place  in  my  esteem. 

Emilia  Barriga  has  been  married  twice.  When  Emilia  Bar- 
riga  de  Sanmartin,  she  bore  two  children,  Jose  Sanmartin  (Bar- 
riga), or  Chepe,  and  Jose  Maria,  called,  for  shortness,  Pepe.  She 
then  married  Mr.  Modest  Slack — Don  Modesto  Flojo — and  had 
a  lot  of  daughters — six,  I  believe — and  has  now  an  infant  son. 
Sanmartin  owned,  or  rather  held,  the  Hacienda  of  La  Paila,  of 
which  more  anon.  Senor  Flojo  and  the  younger  children  have 
not  much  property.  But  little  difference  is  seen  between  them. 
They  are  all  smart  and  quite  amiable  children,  and  the  oldest 
Sanmartin  is  not  yet  sixteen. 

The  hacienda  extends  from  Las  Canas  River  to  the  River 
Murillo,  which  formerly  bounded  the  provinces  of  Antioquia 
and  Popayan.  The  width  there  is  seven  miles.  The  length, 
from  the  Cauca  to  the  summit  of  the  Quindio,  may  be  30  miles, 
and  the  whole  can  not  contain  less  than  500  square  miles,  and 
may  well  be  a  thousand.  During  the  good  old  regime  of  tyr- 
anny, when  prosperity  was  the  lot  of  the  rich,  and  unrequited 
labor  that  of  the  poor,  the  hacienda  is  said  to  have  boasted 
36,000  cows  and  800  mares ;  now  the  mares  are  greatly  re- 
duced in  number,  and  the  cows  can  not  be  a  tithe  of  what  they 
were.  Two  hundred  years  ago  a  dying  Sanmartin  bequeathed 
this  property  to  the  souls  in  Purgatory,  and,  until  lately,  it  has 
been  in  dead  hands,  "manos  muertas,"  from  which,  I  suppose, 
comes  the  French  word  mortmain.  It  was  fixed  that  the  stew- 
ardship of  the  land  should  descend,  on  nearly  the  same  princi- 
ples that  a  crown  does,  from  his  eldest  son  downward.  None 
of  his  descendants,  as  a  steward — mayordomo — had  power  to 
sell  or  divide.  Nor  was  it  a  mere  honor.  The  estate  was  to 
yield  so  many  masses  per  annum  at  $1  60  each,  and  all  that  the 
property  yielded  over  this  was  the  steward's.  This  excess  of 
revenue  became  at  length  so  great,  that  the  stipulated  sum  to 
go  for  masses  came  to  be  considered  as  a  sort  of  tax,  and  the 
steward  as  the  owner,  subject  only  to  this  irrevocable  annual 
payment. 

This  arrangement  was  designed  to  keep  this  estate,  as  large 
as  a  county,  perpetually  undivided  and  in  the  hands  of  one 


MORTMAIN  AND  CAPELLANfAS.  419 

man.  Republicanism  might  protest  against  the  arrangement, 
but  it  would  be  sacrilege  to  change  it. 

But  I  have  not  told  all.  A  previous  Sanmartin,  the  'grand- 
father of  him  that  deeded  this  domain  to  the  use  of  the  toasted 
inmates  of  Purgatory  and  for  the  benefit  of  the  priests,  pledged 
it  and  incumbered  it  with  ten  masses  a  year  for  the  same  be- 
nevolent object.  The  person  who  was  to  receive  the  $16  per 
annum  was  the  capellan,  and  the  incumbrance  was  a  capellania. 
These  words  have  the  same  basis  as  chaplain  and  chaplaincy, 
but  the  meaning  is  quite  different.  If  the  capellan  has  too  many 
masses  to  say,  he  may  hire  another  to  say  them,  and  if  he  can 
hire  them  for  less  than  $16,  he  may  put  the  balance  in  his  pock- 
et. Nay,  the  capellan  need  not  be  a  priest,  and  a  capellania  is 
a  piece  of  property  as  well  as  a  stewardship.  And  the  Sanmar- 
tin who  originated  the  mayorazgo,  as  the  right  of  stewardship  is 
called,  settled  on  his  other  son  a  capellania  of  $160,  which  has 
come  somehow  into  the  hands  of  my  friend  Ramon  Gonzalez. 

Land  that  is  charged  with  a  capellania  can  not  be  sold,  even 
if  not  in  dead  hands,  without  the  consent  of  the  capellan.  Many 
estates  have  in  this  way  been  incumbered  with  six  capellanias, 
and  a  division,  or  even  a  sale  of  it,  becomes  almost  impossible. 
Is  there  no  remedy  ?  Did  the  Sanmartines  of  the  17th  century 
exceed  their  rights  in  thus  fixing  impediments  to  the  alienation 
or  division  of  the  property  by  their  heirs  ?  Much  can  be  said 
on  both  sides,  and  I  suppose  much  has  been  said  in  some  law- 
books  that  I  never  shall  read.  I  am  inclined,  for  one,  to  think 
the  work  should  be  undone  in  some  way,  that  society  may  not 
be  blocked  up  till  the  end  of  time  by  a  superstitious  provision 
in  a  will  of  the  17th  century. 

So,  too,  thinks  the  democratic — ultra-democratic — govern- 
ment of  New  Granada.  Hence  the  law  for  abolishing  mayor- 
azgos,  and  the  law  for  redeeming  capellanias  and  other  perpet- 
ual charges — censos  they  are  called.  Cursed  laws  they  are ; 
cursed  by  the  pope,  cursed  by  the  archbishop,  cursed  by  the 
bishops  and  other  clergy,  cursed  by  fanatical  old  women  of  both 
sexes  and  all  ages  that  believe  that  Christ  gave  this  fair  coun- 
try to  Peter,  Peter  to  the  pope,  and  the  pope  to  the  archbishop 
and  bishops  of  New  Granada,  and  that  man  was  made  for  the 
Church,  and  not  the  Church  for  man. 


420  NEW  GRANADA. 

This  bold  step,  denounced  by  Pius  IX.  in  his  allocution  of 
27th  September,  1852,  was  taken  by  the  Lopez  administration. 
It  was  the  offspring  of  republican  ideas,  and  of  necessity,  and 
would  meet  my  full  approbation  had  it  no  other  application. 
New  mayorazgos  had  long  since  been  prohibited,  and  now  all 
existing  ones  were  cut  off  at  a  blow.  All  censos  can  be  trans- 
ferred from  a  piece  of  real  estate  to  government  by  paying  to  the 
treasury  eight  times  its  annual  product.  All  this  estate,  then, 
must  belong  to  Chepe  Sanmartin,  who  was  steward  of  it,  though 
a  minor  of  twelve  years  of  age  when  this  law  made  him  owner. 
Were  the  capellanias  redeemed,  it  would  be  held  under  no  other 
limitations  than  ordinary  real  estate  of  minor  heirs. 

But  I  am  assured  that  the  law  has  abounded  in  mischievous 
results.  Hospitals  and  schools  must  share  the  fate  of  nunneries 
and  collections  of  greasy  monks,  for  all  are  called  pious  founda- 
tions. Perpetual  ground-rents  ought  to  be  redeemable  in  some 
way,  and  if  no  other  could  be  found,  in  this ;  but  it  is  asserted 
that  ordinary  loans  of  money  on  bond  and  mortgage  are  thus 
convertible  into  demands  on  a  bankrupt  national  treasury.  This, 
if  true,  is  infamous  indeed. 

I  beg  the  learned  not  to  laugh  at,  nor  the  unlearned  to  under- 
value, my  essay  on  tenures.  It  has  cost  me  immense  study, 
and  even  as  I  write  it  is  with  a  feeling  of  uncertainty  as  to  some 
of  the  facts.  Doubtless  there  are  in  Blackstone  law-terms  that 
I  might  have  introduced  had  I  known  them  ;  but  I  have  written 
this  for  American  laymen,  as  the  lawyers  call  us,  the  uninitiated. 

It  was  not  unintentionally  that  I  coined  the  surname  Flojo 
(slack]  for  Don  Modesto,  the  second  husband  of  Emilia  Barriga. 
Perhaps,  in  this  land  of  slackness,  a  slacker  man  lives  not.  Hence 
the  estate  is  all  run  down,  the  cows  run  wild,  the  tenants  run 
lawless,  and,  but  for  two  circumstances,  the  family  would  have 
run  to  ruin.  A  special  love  for  a  big  saddle-bottle,  which  he  has 
affectionately  named  La  Pechona  (the  full-breasted),  and  which 
he  loves  to  suck  a  little  too  well,  and  a  general  love  for  dogs, 
hunting,  and  idleness,  seem  the  most  striking  characteristics  of 
the  man  whom  the  good  Emilia  made  the  stepfather  of  Chepe 
and  Pepe. 

The  two  things  that  saved  the  family  from  ruin  are,  first,  the 
energy  of  Emilia  herself,  and  that  of  a  young  cousin  of  hers,  a 


FOEGIVENESS  OF  SIN.  421 

decided  character.  Damian  Caicedo,  LL.D.,  is  of  mixed  blood 
and  low  origin.  At  16  he  could  not  read  his  mother  tongue.  A 
fortunate  accident  disabled  him  for  severe  physical  labor,  and  he 
at  once  began  an  education  that  he  completed  amid  every  kind 
of  self-denial  and  privation.  He  is  just  taking  hold  of  the  af- 
fairs of  his  slack  relative,  and,  if  I  mistake  not,  will  yet  make  his 
own  fortune  in  mending  those  of  his  friends. 

I  could  not  expect  all  the  conveniences  that  I  might  desire 
in  this  family,  but  there  were  other  things  to  make  amends  for 
all  deficiencies.  I  enjoyed  myself;  I  taught  the  children — an 
agreeable  task  for  me.  And  for  the  Lady  Emilia  herself  I  have 
a  real  esteem ;  if  but  one  of  my  Catholic  acquaintances  should 
get  to  heaven,  I  think  it  will  be  she. 

"  If  you  were  only  a  Christian,"  she  said  to  me  one  day,  "  I 
think  you  would  be  most  like  a  saint  of  any  man  I  ever  saw." 

"Were  I  a  '  Christian,'  instead  of  a  heretic  as  I  am,  I  should 
be  like  other  Christians,  for  it  is  their  religion  that  makes  them 
what  they  are." 

"  No,  it  is  not.  Those  who  are  wicked  among  us  sin  in  de- 
fiance of  the  teachings  of  the  Church.  And  all  need  forgiveness, 
but  it  can  come  to  none  except  in  the  way  God  has  appointed." 

"  But  he  did  not  enjoin  that  the  intervention  of  a  fellow-sin- 
ner is  necessary  to  make  the  pardon  of  God  available." 

"  And  how  dare  you  deny  it  ?" 

"  Listen,  for  it  is  a  fact  that  I  am  going  to  tell  you.  When 
I  was  a  little  boy  of  six,  like  your  little  Sara,  I  gained  access 
to  my  mother's  sugar-jar,  and  carried  off  a  lump  as  large  as  a 
lime.  After  I  had  eaten  it,  my  conscience  smote  me.  I  did 
not  fear  detection,  but  the  anger  of  God.  So  I  went  off  behind 
a  knoll,  and  kneeled  down  in  a  large  hole,  where  a  rock  had 
been  dug  out  of  the  ground,  and  confessed  my  sin  to  God,  and 
prayed  for  forgiveness.  Do^  you  think  that  God  forgave  me  ?" 

"  Ah !  you  ought  to  talk  with  a  priest,  and  not  with  an  igno- 
rant woman  like  me." 

She  wants  my  little  Testament  very  much,  and  I  am  sorry 
I  can  not  spare  it.  But  my  Bible  is  too  heavy  to  carry  with 
me  when  I  leave  my  trunks,  and  I  must  deny  her.  [I  mailed  it 
to  her  from  Cartagena.  The  postage  was  five  cents,  because  its 
weight  exceeded  four  ounces.] 


422  NEW  GRANADA. 

Damian's  sister  came  here  on  a  visit  while  I  was  here,  and 
with  her  came  a  mulatto  lady  to  teach  the  children.  There  is 
nothing  interesting  about  either.  The  females  eat  at  the  table 
after  we  leave  it.  I  have  managed  to  eat  with  them  once  or 
twice,  but  they  prefer  that  I  should  be  at  the  first  table. 

The  house,  as  usual,  contains  no  inner  doors,  though  there 
may  be  said  to  be  two  rooms  and  a  passage.  Two  beds  are 
located  in  the  passage,  and  the  inner  room,  that  serves  us  much 
for  sitting-room  and  study  by  day,  is  the  principal  dormitory  at 
night.  My  hammock  requires  more  space.  I  attach  one  cord 
to  the  roof  in  the  inner  room,  and  the  other  passes  out  at  the 
top  of  the  outer  door,  and  is  fastened  to  a  post  of  the  piazza ; 
so  I  occupy  the  whole  house,  though  bodily  I  sleep  alone  in 
the  outer  room,  or  sala. 

The  children's  beds  were  mere  rugs  to  lie  on,  and  a  blanket 
apiece  to  wrap  themselves  in  like  a  cocoon.  The  motherly 
Clementina,  the  oldest  girl,  wound  up  the  little  boy  with  her. 
Of  course,  they  denude  themselves  utterly  before  wrapping  up. 
I  had  the  impudence  to  ask  the  children  if  the  young  ladies  did 
the  same,  and  they  said  yes. 

I  can  not  pretend  to  conjecture  the  number  of  houses  on  the 
estate.  They  are  scattered  from  the  road  to  the  river,  but  there 
are  none  far  east  of  the  road.  A  line  of  houses  skirts  that  large 
plain  north  of  the  La  Paila  called  the  Medio.  The  inhabitants 
there  are  mostly  white.  There  is  a  group  on  the  south  bank  of 
the  river,  half  a  mile  below  the  ford  ;  the  inhabitants  of  these 
have  a  good  deal  of  negro  blood  in  their  veins.  On  the  south 
end  of  the  road,  across  the  estate,  there  are  no  houses.  These 
families  of  herdsmen,  of  every  color,  have  been  a  great  study 
for  me. 

The  chief  exports  of  this  tract  are  young  bulls,  young  horses, 
and  hogs.  The  latter  are  raised  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  river 
forest,  the  others  by  the  family.  Some  of  the  tenants  owe  per- 
sonal service  for  rent.  This  is  generally  rendered  on  Friday 
and  Saturday,  and  most  of  it  performed  on  horseback.  The 
others  pay  a  ground-rent  of  from  $1  60  to  $3  20  per  annum. 
All  have  their  estancias,  or  fields,  in  the  forest.  They  contain 
from  half  an  acre  to  two  acres,  inclosed  by  an  elliptical  or  cir- 
cular fence  of  split  guaduas.  Those  who  live  in  the  open  land 


HACIENDA  DE  LA  PAILA. 

have  often  quite  a  distance  to  go  to  their  fields,  but,  as  they 
work  only  occasionally,  it  makes  little  difference. 

Cacao-orchards — cacaguales — are  also  found  in  the  forest,  but 
they  are  not  numerous.  People  have  hardly  forethought  enough 
to  plant  any  thing  that  will  be  so  slow  in  yielding  returns.  The 
platanal  yields  ripe  fruit  in  about  a  year,  and  may  be  kept  up 
indefinitely ;  but  when  the  fence  is  thoroughly  rotted  down,  they 
prefer  beginning  in  a  new  place.  In  all  the  dry  forest  toward 
the  river,  these  inclosures  are  scattered  within  short  distances 
of  each  other,  like  plums  in  a  pudding.  Sometimes  two  adjoin 
each  other ;  others  almost  touch  or  lie  in  sight  of  each  other. 
Cane  is  also  raised,  but  in  small  quantities,  only  for  horse-feed, 
aguardiente,  sirup,  and  a  very  little  panela. 

A  few  bags  are  made  from  cabuya,  and  one  man  braids  jipi- 
japa  hats ;  but  nothing  probably  is  made  and  sold  off  the  ha- 
cienda, and  all  articles  of  clothing  are  imported,  not  excepting 
alpargates  even. 

But  the  grazing  interest  demands  our  more  particular  notice. 
I  will  attempt  its  description,  premising  that  the  estate  contains 
three  distinct  herds  of  mares  and  three  of  cows,  in  three  pastures 
or  ranges — the  Medio,  the  Central,  and  the  Guavito.  The  cen- 
tral pasture  is  separated  from  the  Medio  by  the  La  Paila,  and 
from  Guavito  only  by  broken  ground  running  from  the  eastern 
forest  to  the  western.  I  will  describe  the  rodeo,  or  herding,  of 
a  Friday  at  Guavito,  the  larger  of  the  three  pastures. 

On  Friday  morning  an  unusual  sound  strikes  my  ear  on 
awaking.  It  is  the  step  of  many  horses  approaching  the  corral, 
or  inclosure,  near  the  house.  All  hands  must  have  been  on  the 
move  for  some  time,  for  they  are  mounted,  driving  in  the  horses 
of  the  central  pasture.  One  object  of  this  muster  is  to  catch 
animals  for  the  grand  campaign  of  the  day  at  Guavito. 

We  will  not  go  down  to  this,  but,  while  breakfast  is  prepar- 
ing, let  us  examine  the  horses  we  are  to  mount  immediately  aft- 
er. The  horses  themselves  are  the  most  obedient  and  well-brok- 
en I  have  ever  seen.  The  slightest  intimation  of  the  bridle  will 
guide  them.  They  will  patiently  gratify  your  whim  of  flower- 
gathering,  even  at  the  expense  of  running  their  head  into  a  thorn- 
bush.  You  may  stand  on  the  back  of  many  of  them,  leaving 
the  reins  at  your  feet,  or,  throwing  the  reins  over  the  high  pom- 


424  NEW  GRANADA. 

mel  of  the  saddle,  leave  them  for  some  time.  Their  gait  is  gen- 
erally very  easy.  They  are  not  large,  nor  is  much  regard  had 
to  parentage. 

The  bridle  was  made  here.  They  would  not  like  to  trust  to 
a  bit  made  abroad.  The  Caucan  bit  is  a  formidable  affair.  The 
reins  are  attached  to  one  end  of  a  lever  of  the  first  kind ;  the 
fulcrum  is  in  the  horse's  mouth,  against  the  lower  jaw,  and  far 
back  the  other  end  of  the  lever  is  ready  to  press  against  the  pal- 
ate, and  force  open  the  mouth.  If  he  attempt  to  hinder  this 
operation  by  holding  fast  the  apparatus  with  his  teeth,  they  only 
seize  upon  two  hollow  cylinders,  within  which  the  bit  plays  free- 
ly. One  stout  chain  passes  within  the  mouth,  near  the  fulcrum ; 
another,  under  the  jaw,  counteracts  this,  and,  as  the  mouth  is 
forced  upon,  they  gripe  the  jaw  beyond  endurance.  Still  a  third 
chain  unites  the  points  to  which  the  reins  are  attached.  The 
reins  and  headstall  are  of  raw-hide,  twisted  or  braided,  accord- 
ing as  fancy  or  economy  dictates.  The  reins  would  resist  a 
strain  of  half  a  ton.  A  broad  piece,  often  ornamented,  passes 
across  the  forehead,  which  may  be  slipped  down  over  the  eyes 
if  you  wish  to  leave  the  horse  without  hitching.  Finally,  the 
reins,  after  uniting  at  a  point  convenient  for  the  hand,  separate 
again  into  two  long  thongs,  which  may  be  used  to  tie  the  horse, 
or  as  a  whip. 

The  saddle  is  a  study  for  an  anatomist.  The  cojinetes  are  a 
cover  over  the  whole,  made  of  a  leather  resembling  buckskin. 
It  is  often  padded  and  embroidered  with  silk.  It  has  two  huge 
pockets,  each  capable  of  containing  a  pair  of  shoes,  or  $200  in 
silver.  Removing  the  cojinetes,  we  come  to  a  surface  of  hard 
leather — the  coraza.  This  takes  off:  under  it  you  see  three  straps 
of  raw-hide  passing  over  the  saddle  in  three  distinct  directions, 
and  uniting  in  a  ring  on  each  side.  The  girth  consists  of  twisted 
raw-hide,  passing  several  times  from  the  ring  on  the  off  side  to 
another  ring.  It  is  adjusted  by  passing  a  thong  four  times  be- 
tween this  last  ring  and  the  one  on  the  near  side.  This  thong 
is  drawn  tight  enough,  and  tied  in  a  peculiar  knot.  Under  the 
girth-straps  is  yet  a  third  cover,  which  takes  off,  and  leaves  the 
saddle  a  skeleton  of  wood  and  iron,  padded  on  the  under  side. 
Across  the  middle  of  this  skeleton — saddle-tree  (fuste) — passes  a 
strong  strap,  fastened  in  the  centre  by  a  string  of  leather  passing 


SADDLE  AND  BRIDLE.  425 

many  times  through  the  strap  and  the  saddle-tree,  sewing  them 
together.  Both  ends  of  the  strap  are  pierced  with  holes  to  buck- 
le on  the  stirrups.  The  stirrup-leathers  are  imported.  The 
best  stirrups  are  the  slipper-form  of  brass  or  wood :  common 
stirrups  (de  aro)  are  used,  or  even  a  stick  of  wood  supported  by 
two  strings.  The  crupper  is  like  ours ;  but,  besides  this,  the  va- 
quero's  saddle  should  have  an  arretranca  to  enable  the  horse  to 
hold  back  without  straining  the  girth.  Beneath  the  saddle,  and 
to  protect  it  and  the  horse,  is  placed  a  sudadero :  it  is  a  mat  of 
rushes,  a  rug,  or,  at  worst,  an  old  sack  folded.  It  would  have 
saved  me  some  labor  had  I  been  told  by  my  books  that  in  New 
Granada  a  high-pommeled  saddle  and  an  arm-chair  are  silla  /  a 
low-pommeled  saddle,  a  side-saddle,  and  a  fresh-water  turtle  are 
galdpago  ;  a  common  chair,  taburete  ;  easy-chair, poltrona  ;  ot- 
toman and  stool,  cojin  ;  sofa,  sofa  ;  lounge  without  a  back,  can- 
ape, ;  bench  with  a  back,  escano  ;  bench  without  a  back,  banco. 
Saddle,  bridle,  sudadero,  stirrups,  and  halter  (jaquima),  constitute 
a  montura.  A  traveler  here  ought  always  to  own  his  montura, 
and  watch  it  well.  Horses,  cows,  and  goats  will  eat  his  suda- 
dero, and  dogs  will  eat  all  the  rest  but  the  tanned  leather,  wood, 
and  iron ;  of  these  last,  including  the  contents  of  the  cojinetes, 
the  peons  will  rob  him ;  his  clothes  are  victimized  by  the  wash- 
women, and  his  skin  by  musquitoes,  fleas,  and  niguas.  Happy  is 
he  if  he  can  save  his  bones  and  his  conscience  (particularly  the 
latter)  undamaged,  and,  leaving  his  cash  and  much  of  his  flesh, 
return  to  his  native  land  with  his  credit  and  his  constitution. 

But  where  am  I  running  to  ?  In  the  first  place,  breakfast  is 
ready ;  secondly,  I  have  no  right  to  complain,  for  my  belt  is  too 
small  for  me  ;  only  the  more  respectable  insects  have  drunk 
my  blood,  and  I  have  found  the  rogues  fewer  and  smaller  here 
than  at  home.  But  to  horse !  to  horse ! 

Off  with  your  slippers ;  put  on  a  pair  of  alpargates,  and  draw 
on  a  pair  of  zamarras  ;  buckle  the  huge  spurs  securely  to  your 
heels  ;  take  your  guasca  (rope  of  hide,  with  lazo  or  noose  at  the 
end)  ;  tie  it  under  the  right  flap  of  your  saddle,  with  a  peculiar 
knot  which  Pepe  will  show  you;  tie  your  halter  in  the  same 
way  on  this  side,  and  mount.  You  will  find  vaqueros  worse 
mounted,  without  cojinetes  or  halter,  without  zamarras  or  al- 
pargates, the  spur  fastened  to  the  naked  heel,  and  the  panta- 


426 


NEW  GRANADA. 


loons  rolled  up  to  keep  them  from  the  mud.     More  than  one 

you  will  see  with  noth- 
ing on  but  hat,  ruana, 
pants,  and  spurs ;  their 
feet  stuck  into  stirrups 
carved  out  of  wood,  or 
merely  resting  on  a  bit 
of  wood  suspended  from 
the  saddle  by  a  forked 
thong. 

As  we  approach  the 
corral  of  Guavito,  the 
' '  mares"  (for  they  speak 
only  of  them  in  the  pas- 
tures) are  driven  in  be- 
fore us.  Other  vaque- 
ros  come  in  from  below, 
bringing  with  them  the 
mares  from  that  direc- 
tion. They  enter  the 
corral  together,  their 
feet  pattering  on  the 
ground  like  rain  on  a 
roof.  The  corral  has 
an  inner  yard,  to  which  the  mares  run  directly.  A  man  on  horse- 
back guards  the  entrance.  Others  are  not  mounted  to  their 
mind,  and  proceed  to  catch  fresh  horses. 

This  is  generally  done  on  foot.  The 
vaquero  takes  the  guasca  coiled  up  in 
his  left  hand,  and  the  lazo  (noose)  in  the 
right.  The  running  knot  (llave — key) 
is  not  at  his  hand,  but  at  a  third  of  a 
circle  from  it,  when  the  lazo  is  opened 
out  into  a  circle,  as  in  the  adjoining  dia- 
gram, where  the  longer  diameter  of  the 
ellipse  should  be  regarded  as  four  feet, 
and  not  estimated  from  the  size  of  the 
hand.  He  has  it  already  in  his  hand, 
has  singled  out  the  animal  he  will  catch, 


THE   VAQUERO. 


CATCHING  A  HORSE.  427 

and  is  waiting  a  moving  of  the  herd.  The  instant  he  finds  his 
prey  approaching,  he  commences  whirling  the  lazo  round  his 
head  in  such  a  way  as  to  keep  the  noose  spread  until  the  pro- 
pitious moment  comes  to  let  go.  He  then  pays  out  the  guasca 
with  the  left  hand,  letting  it  run  through  the  right  till  the  time 
to  hold  it  fast. 

I  think  the  idea  we  have  of  skill  in  the  use  of  the  lazo  is  ex- 
aggerated. Even  in  the  corral  it  is  well  to  catch  five  horses  at 
ten  throws.  One  assured  me  that  100  throws  would  catch  80 
or  90  horses.  The  next  six  throws  caught  but  one.  Still,  the 
noose  and  the  lash,  the  bow  and  the  gun,  are  the  four  instru- 
ments by  which  man  holds  his  title  to  rule  over  the  animal 
world. 

The  jnoment  a  broken  horse  finds  his  head  is  your  aim,  he 
tries  to  mingle  it  with  others,  and  holds  it  particularly  near  the 
fence.  As  you  approach  he  at  length  starts  and  runs  with  all 
his  might  for  the  other  side  of  the  corral.  You  throw  the  noose 
as  he  is  going  from  you.  The  moment  it  touches  his  neck  he 
stops  short.  He  is  as  tame  as  a  girl  caught  in  blind-man's-buff. 
A  colt,  on  the  other  hand,  when  he  finds  you  are  aiming  at  him, 
is  wrought  to  desperation.  When  caught,  he  runs  and  chokes 
himself  in  the  noose ;  he  flounces  and  throws  himself  on  the 
ground,  but  all  in  vain.  The  hand  of  man,  ever  a  terror  to  him, 
must  approach  his  throat  before  his  stertorous  breathing,  like 
that  of  a  man  in  a  fit,  can  be  relieved. 

The  horses  are  shut  in  with  bars — francos — of  guadua,  and 
we  sally  forth  in  long  procession  for  cows.  The  tame  band  are 
near  in  the  open  plain.  With  a  long  circuit  we  get  ready  to 
slip  between  them  and  the  forest.  "Examine  girths,"  says 
Cristobal,  who  has  command.  Every  head  is  bent  down.  Some 
dismount.  "  All  ready!"  The  head  of  the  column  dashes  for- 
ward at  a  gallop,  and  soon  a  line  of  some  30  horsemen,  at  dis- 
tances from  3  to  10  rods  apart,  extends  between  the  herd  and 
their  wonted  refuge.  We  advance,  and  the  cows,  with  a  gener- 
al lowing,  proceed  peaceably  but  rapidly  in  the  desired  direction. 

Suddenly  a  cow,  with  head  erect,  and  tail  horizontal  and  rig- 
id, breaks  our  line  at  full  gallop  for  the  thicket.  Two  horse- 
men start  in  pursuit,  and  she  soon  finds  a  noose  about  her  head. 
When  she  has  run  the  length  the  guasca  permits,  her  head  can 


428  NEW  GRANADA. 

go  no  farther,  and  her  body  is  unwilling  to  stop.  She  falls, 
and  is  not  disposed  to  rise.  One  vaquero  approaches,  care- 
fully keeping  out  of  the  circle  of  which  the  tightened  guasca  is 
the  radius  and  his  companion  the  centre.  Whirling  the  end  of 
his  own  guasca  round  and  round  suddenly,  he  brings  it  down 
like  a  slung-shot  upon  the  poor  rebel,  and  she  starts  to  her  feet. 
Still  she  will  not  move  one  step.  He  raises  his  foot,  and  drags 
his  cruel  spur  along  her  back.  She  darts  forward,  and  the 
horse  of  her  leader,  the  moment  he  feels  the  guasca  slacken, 
starts  on,  keeping  one  eye  upon  the  movements  of  the  cow. 
After  zigzagging  and  floundering  a  while,  she  waxes  wroth,  and 
assumes  the  aggressive  upon  her  leader.  Now  she  finds  the  oth- 
er lazo  about  her  horns,  and  each  horseman  keeps  her  from 
reaching  the  other.  I  have  heard  of  a  cow  becoming  so  enraged 
as  to  drop  down  dead  on  the  spot.  Bulls  are  never  so  utterly 
furious. 

Meanwhile,  the  herd,  lowing  and  running,  enter  the  corral,  and 
move  round  and  round  like  a  whirlpool  filled  with  horns.  Last 
comes  the  captive ;  but  how  shall  we  liberate  her?  He  that  takes 
a  wolf  by  the  ears  should  always  consider  first  how  he  will  fare 
when  he  quits  his  hold.  To  loose  a  cow  takes  more  time  than 
to  catch  her.  A  third  man  throws  his  noose  so  that  it  lays  part- 
ly on  her  back  and  partly  on  the  ground  behind  her.  If  she 
does  not  move  of  her  own  accord,  he  catches  her  by  the  tail  and 
pulls.  Either  in  yielding  or  resisting,  she  steps  both  feet  over 
the  guasca.  It  might  then  be  drawn  tight  around  the  middle  of 
her  body.  Instead  of  this,  it  is  slipped  off  behind,  and  tight- 
ened about  her  heels,  which  are  pulled  back,  and,  with  a  slight 
push  or  pull,  she  falls.  She  is  now  helpless.  I  have  seen  a 
horse  drag  a  cow  in  this  manner  by  the  heels  into  or  out  of  a 
yard.  Her  head  is  safely  approached,  the  lazos  removed  from 
it,  and  the  horseman  remounts.  The  slackened  guasca  permits 
her  to  bring  her  feet  forward,  and  in  separating  them  she  opens 
the  lazo.  She  springs  upon  her  feet,  reflects  a  second,  makes  a 
dash  at  a  horseman,  who  eludes  her.  Shaking  her  horns,  as  if 
blaspheming  in  her  heart,  she  runs  off  to  the  herd,  who  are  thus 
taught  that  the  way  of  transgressors  is  hard. 

The  outer  corral  has  two  entrances :  a  horseman  is  stationed 
at  one,  and  a  ruana  on  a  stake  at  the  other,  and  we  start  off  for 


COW-HEEDING.  429 

the  wilder  herd.  Our  way  is  riverward,  over  beautiful  valley 
land,  sprinkled  with  clumps  of  trees  and  thorny  bushes  of  aca- 
cia. Silence!  We  steal  along  at  a  walk,  curving  our  course 
around  an  unseen  centre.  Now  Cristobal  starts  forward  at  a 
gallop,  with  his  head  bent  down  to  the  horse's  mane.  We  fol- 
low, and  the  herd  find  us  shouting  between  them  and  their  ref- 
uge. A  few  desperadoes  plunge  with  a  crash  into  the  thorny 
thicket  behind  us,  the  rest  gallop  in  the  opposite  direction.  A 
bushy  ravine  extends  across  our  course  near  the  corral.  Instead 
of  crossing  it,  almost  the  whole  herd  pass  our  ranks,  and  disap- 
pear toward  the  river — all  but  now  and  then  one  arrested  by  the 
lazo  in  her  flight.  Those  who  have  not  thus  caught  a  prize  beat 
the  bushes,  dislodge  an  animal,  and  catch  him  as  he  runs.  In 
this  way  we  secure  at  least  a  delegation  from  the  wild  herd ; 
we  will  hope  to  do  better  next  time. 

Now  begins  the  business  of  the  day.  What  calf  has  not  his 
ear-mark?  What  youngster  of  two  months  has  not  his  little 
brand  on  his  cheek?  What  yearling  not  branded  for  life  on 
his  side  ?  A  lazo  on  his  head,  another  on  his  heels.  A  fire  is 
burning  by  the  division  fence,  and  the  irons  are  hot.  Here  is  a 
calf  with  a  sack  of  morbid  growth.  A  spatula  of  wood  is  whit- 
tled out  with  a  machete ;  fifty  maggots  of  all  sizes  are  dislodged 
from  the  cavity,  and  it  is  filled  with  the  first  dry,  soft,  absorb- 
ent substance  at  hand. 

A  young  bull  is  caught  who  is  not  to  be  trifled  with.  The 
guasca  is  thrown  over  a  forked  post — horca — and  in  vain  he 
tries  to  approach  his  captor ;  every  movement  brings  him  near- 
er the  fatal  fork  till  his  head  touches  it.  His  heels  are  secured 
as  before.  Look  out  for  him  when  he  is  let  loose!  But  in  five 
months'  constant  exposure,  I  have  known  but  one  horse  gored 
by  a  bull.  The  cows  are  at  length  released,  and  rush  lowing 
from  the  corral. 

Now  comes  the  turn  of  the  horses.  They  are  subject  to  many 
more  infirmities  than  the  cows,  are  of  more  value  per  head,  and, 
besides,  are  to  be  trained.  Hence  they  are  reviewed  much  oft- 
ener  and  more  carefully.  Owing  to  this,  they  are  not  so  wild. 

This  life  would  not  be  without  its  perils  were  not  the  va- 
quero  so  tough.  He  is  riding  at  full  gallop,  and  his  horse  puts 
his  foot  into  a  deep  hole  covered  with  grass.  He  cornea  to  the 


430  NEW  GRANADA. 

ground  as  from  a  rail-car.  He  picks  up  his  guasca,  and,  if  his 
cow  has  not  got  clear,  off  he  starts  again  in  the  chase.  His 
girth  breaks  when  he  has  a  bull  tied  to  the  pommel  of  his  sad- 
dle. He  manages  to  escape  unharmed.  I  have  known  but  one 
serious  accident,  the  dislocation  of  a  shoulder-joint. 

Both  horse  and  rider  enjoy  the  sport  highly.  It  is  severe 
sport  for  the  horse,  who  will  injure  himself  before  showing  any 
sign  of  flagging. 

A  curious  scene  closes  the  rodeo.  A  vaquero  catches  a  wild 
colt  which  he  is  to  break.  He  manages,  amid  his  struggles,  to 
exchange  the  guasca  for  a  halter,  and  binds  the  infuriate  young- 
ster securely  to  the  tail  of  his  horse,  who  goes  homeward  from 
the  corral  with  the  meek  resignation  of  a  deacon  who  has  a  dis- 
sipated son. 

I  have  not  seen  the  process  of  breaking.  The  young  repro- 
bate, unlike  his  biped  prototype,  grows  more  and  more  tracta- 
ble, and  at  length  leads  submissively.  He  is  then  led  in  the 
same  way  when  mounted,  and  feeling  that  his  head  is  not  his 
own,  he  does  not  try  to  defend  his  right  to  his  back.  The 
horse  with  which  the  colt  is  placed  in  such  intimate  relations  is 
called  his  godfather — padrino.  Beating  and  brutality  are  no 
part  of  the  system. 

The  gait  of  the  pupil  is  carefully  attended  to.  In  some  cases 
the  fore  foot  (hand)  is  tied  to  the  corresponding  hind  foot  by  a 
cord  shorter  than  the  natural  step  would  render  agreeable.  In 
other  cases  the  feet  are  loaded  with  bags  of  sand  or  shot  to  make 
him  raise  them  better.  He  is  made  to  walk  round  in  circles  of 
small  radius,  or  in  double  circles  like  a  figure  8.  Trotting  is 
not  in  request,  as  there  are  no  carriage-horses. 

The  father  of  colts  is  a  polygamist.  He  has  his  family — ata- 
jada — under  so  much  subjection  as  to  keep  them  from  mingling 
with  those  of  his  neighbors.  When  they  have  all  been  mingled 
up  in  the  recojida,  as  the  assemblage  in  the  corral  is  called,  as 
they  go  forth  he  calls  them  about  him,  and,  if  any  one  shows  a 
disposition  to  straggle,  he  goes  after  her,  and  administers  as 
much  correction  as  the  case  demands  with  his  teeth.  The  pa- 
drotes  seldom  fight  with  each  other,  though  I  can  not  imagine 
that  they  have  come  to  their  present  good  understanding  with- 
out some  boxing  in  days  past.  I  saw,  indeed,  but  one  horse- 


BEEEDING  COLTS  AND  MULES.  431 

fight,  and  the  originator  of  that  was  a  traveler's  horse,  that  had 
got  out  into  the  pasture,  and  was  ignorant  or  regardless  of  the 
compacts,  truces,  and  treaties  then  and  there  in  force. 

Individually,  these  animals  are  by  no  means  so  respectable  as 
they  ought  to  be  in  a  grazing  community.  More  than  half  of 
them  could  be  bought  at  $25  each,  and  one  good  Northern  horse 
would  buy  forty  of  them.  But  scientific  breeding  would  require 
more  care  than  any  man  here  is  disposed  to  bestow.  These  an- 
imals are  not  exempt  from  the  menial  service  of  the  saddle,  and, 
with  one  temporary  exception,  I  have  found  them  as  manage- 
able as  any  other.  Ladies  ride  them  through  herds  of  horses 
without  inconvenience. 

A  gentleman  once  told  me  that  he  was  an  ounce  of  gold  rich- 
er that  morning  than  he  expected,  and  asked  me,  as  a  Yankee, 
to  guess  how.  I  told  him  that  a  mare,  from  which  he  had  ex- 
pected a  colt,  had  given  him  a  mule.  I  was  right.  The  value 
attached  to  this  hybrid  race  encourages  the  disgusting  practice 
of  breeding  them,  which  was  forbidden  under  the  Mosaic  dispen- 
sation. The  ass  is  a  privileged  animal  on  the  plantation.  A 
blow  inflicted  on  his  sleek  hide  would  be  felt  keenly  by  his  own- 
er. He  goes  where  he  pleases.  When  he  comes  to  the  house, 
he  walks  through  the  dining-room  toward  the  kitchen  to  see  if 
there  is  any  corn  or  salt  for  him.  If  there  is,  he  has  it  without 
stint.  There  are  two  of  them  at  La  Paila.  With  a  meek  and 
placid  countenance,  they  go  about  from  pasture  to  pasture,  and 
you  meet  one  of  them  now  at  the  Medio  and  now  at  Guavito. 
They  are  friends ;  and  I  knew  them  once  to  perform  a  duet  in 
the  very  dining-room,  as  they  were  returning  from  a  regale  at 
the  kitchen  door.  Think  of  that,  ye  dilettanti !  who  magnify  a 
feline  serenade  in  open  air,  under  your  closed  windows,  to  the 
event  of  the  night.  What  would  you  say  of  two  asses  trumpet- 
ing at  once  in  the  house  ? 

To  forward  the  views  of  these  priests,  as  I  loved  to  call  them, 
to  the  scandal  of  the  faithful  and  amusement  of  the  irreverent, 
some  of  the  heads  of  families — padrotes — are  subjected  to  a 
cruel  operation.  An  incision  is  made  in  the  urethra,  that  cuts 
off  all  hope  of  progeny.  The  victim  is  called  a  retajado.  It  is 
remarkable  that  the  asses  keep  on  friendly  terms  with  these  un- 
fortunates, while  with  others  they  have  furious  battles.  From 


432  NEW  GRANADA. 

some  such  encounter  one  of  our  meek  friars  came  out  with  an 
injured  ear,  which  will  never  revolve  again  "  with  motion  dull 
upon  the  pivot  of  his  skull,"  but  this  particular  "  long  left  ear" 
must  hang  down  forever  from  the  effects  of  a  padrote's  teeth. 

One  night,  at  dusk,  I  was  delighted  to  see  Don  Ramon  Gon- 
zalez ride  up,  accompanied  with  three  men,  who  slept  all  night 
in  the  corredor.  Early  next  morning,  they  and  all  the  dispos- 
able force  about  the  house  disappeared  on  horseback.  Before 
breakfast  they  came  in,  one  by  one  and  two  by  two,  each  arrival 
accompanied  by  a  young  bull.  Some  men  were  so  strongly 
mounted,  and  their  captive  so  tractable  (tractable  is  from  traho, 
to  draw),  that  one  horseman  alone  could  draw  in  a  bull.  Gen- 
erally, it  needed  a  second  man  to  add  propulsion  to  the  attrac- 
tion of  the  first.  In  the  case  of  the  furious  and  indignant,  a 
second  guasca  was  requisite  to  secure  the  captor  from  the  as- 
sault of  his  prize.  All  these  couplets  and  triplets  tended  to- 
ward the  central  corral,  where  half  a  dozen  prisoners  were  stalk- 
ing about  in  ill  humor  while  we  breakfasted. 

As  we  came  out  from  breakfast  the  vaqueros  were  assembled 
in  full  force.  Dinner  was  deferred,  and  the  bull-fishery  was 
continued  till  dark.  Some  evil-minded  fellows  rendered  the  or- 
dinary mode  of  loosing  a  bull  unsafe.  A  noble  horse  was  gored 
at  night,  and  died  next  day.  Two  different  expedients  for  loos- 
ing them  were  now  adopted.  One  was  to  draw  the  animal  up  to 
the  fence,  after  he  had  entered  the  corral,  by  the  united  strength 
of  many  men  tugging  at  the  guasca.  One  stands  with  only  the 
fence  between  him  and  the  frantic  creature's  horns.  He  takes 
hold  of  the  lazo,  and  as  the  guasca  is  suddenly  slackened,  he 
opens  it,  and  Bos  Taurus  walks  off. 

The  other  mode  is  more  ingenious  and  easier.  The  bull  is 
thrown  down  by  a  noose  on  his  heels  at  the  very  entrance  of 
the  corral.  A  guasca  is  attached  to  the  lasso  about  his  horns, 
so  that  it  can  be  pulled  open  at  will.  He  is  headed  straight  to 
the  entrance,  and  his  heels  let  go.  He  bounds  in,  of  course, 
and  a  pull  on  the  newly-applied  guasca  (contra-guasca)  releases 
him,  or,  if  both  get  entangled  in  his  horns,  he  in  time  shakes 
them  off. 

By  night  of  the  second  day  they  had  31  prisoners.  These, 
at  $6  40  each,  more  than  pay  Don  Ramon's  capellania ;  the  rest 


BULL-DRIVING.  433 

he  pays  for  in  five-franc  pieces.  As  they  are  destined  to  the 
slaughter  within  the  year,  there  is  no  need  of  branding  and  coun- 
ter-branding them.  To  counter-brand  is  to  repeat  the  brand ; 
for  the  repetition  of  a  brand,  like  a  second  negative  in  English, 
cancels  the  first.  Early  the  next  morning  the  horsemen  are  in 
the  corral  stirring  them  up.  There  is  a  great  variety  of  dispo- 
sition among  them.  All  are  hungry,  it  is  true,  and  utterly  dis- 
gusted with  their  present  condition.  With  a  few  exceptions, 
there  is  little  fight  in  them.  Horsemen  multiply  in  the  corral 
as  the  bulls  grow  tamer.  Now  they  surround  them,  condense 
them,  and  seem  to  knead  them  up  into  a  ball. 

After  breakfast  I  too  mounted.  Some  horsemen  from  the 
Medio,  and  others  from  Don  Ramon's,  are  continuing  the  knead- 
ing process,  and  shouting  "Toma!  toma!"  Toma  means  take 
it,  and  is  the  call  to  a  dog  or  other  domesticated  animal  when 
you  offer  him  food.  Hence  it  is  the  voice  used  to  call  an  ani- 
mal. I  do  not  know  as  the  bulls  regarded  the  word  in  any  very 
inviting  sense. 

Now  the  bars  are  opened  wide  and  for  the  last  time.  Half  a 
dozen  horsemen  are  within,  and  the  rest  are  drawn  up  in  two 
lines,  forming  a  lane  toward  the  banks  of  the  Rio  Paila.  With 
some  difficulty  the  yard  is  evacuated,  and  the  bulls  stand  in  a 
lane  of  horsemen.  As  they  advance  toward  the  opening  in  front 
of  them,  we  advance,  calling  "Toma!  toma!"  We  proceeded 
very  slowly.  One  made  his  escape.  Three  vaqueros  were  af- 
ter him.  Soon  he  was  sprawling  on  the  ground  in  advance 
of  us,  held  by  his  heels,  and  it  was  not  till  the  rest  were  with 
him  that  he  could  get  up.  Several  escapes  and  recaptures  of 
this  sort  delayed  us,  till  Don  Ramon  decided  to  pacify  a  partic- 
ularly refractory  fellow  that  was  bent  on  mischief.  He  had  him 
by  the  heels,  and  the  other  guasca  had  been  removed.  He  dis- 
mounted from  his  horse,  and  stood  before  the  bull,  and  rubbed 
Cayenne  pepper  in  his  eyes.  All  this  while  his  intelligent  horse 
stood  bracing  backward,  holding  the  guasca  tight,  it  being  tied 
to  the  saddle.  Had  he  stepped  forward  two  paces  and  let  the 
bull  loose,  maddened  by  the  Cayenne,  the  result  might  have 
been  tragic ;  but  the  horse  knew  his  duty  and  did  it.  Our  hol- 
low square  at  first  consisted  of  65  horsemen,  one  at  least  of 
whom  was  a  little  afraid  of  horns.  A  good  knowledge  of  bovine 

EE 


434  NEW  GRANADA. 

ethics  is  necessary  to  the  safety  of  your  horse  in  such  a  neigh- 
borhood. As  the  cavalcade  proceeded,  one  after  another  could 
be  spared  from  it,  and  in  the  end  only  a  few  of  our  men  pro- 
ceeded with  Don  Kamon's. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

GRAZIER   SPORTS. 

Cara-perro  and  Grass-climbing. — Virgin  Forest. — Manifest  Destiny. — Cienega 
de  Burro. — A  Burial. — Rogacion. — Niguas  in  Church. — Neglect  of  the  Sick. 
— Rejoicing  over  the  Dead. — Distilling. — Election. — What  is  in  a  Name? — 
San  Juan.— Bride's  Dress. — A  Swim. — Murillo. — Overo. — Buga-la-Grande. — 
Woods  in  the  Night. — Advantage  of  a  Guide. 

A  SERIES  of  knolls  overhang  the  house  at  La  Paila.  They 
show  rock  in  but  one  place,  but  are  steep  and  almost  precipitous. 
Their  sides  are  well  wooded  for  hundreds  of  feet,  but  the  tops 
are  covered  with  grass.  The  highest  of  these  is  called  Cara- 
perro — dog-head.  It  is  supposed  to  resemble  in  shape  a  dog's 
head,  and  the  summit  is  the  tip  of  the  nose.  I  dare  not  assert 
that  its  height  exceeds  the  diameter  of  the  base,  but  to  reach  the 
summit  cost  me  the  most  formidable  climbing  I  ever  executed. 
Such  hills  are  common  here,  and  flank  the  road  on  the  east  all 
the  way  up  the  valley ;  but  Cara-perro  is  the  highest  for  many 
leagues  around,  and  I  know  of  none  higher  that  can  be  seen 
from  the  settlements. 

I  -was  told  there  was  a  cave  on  the  side  of  Cara-perro,  and  I 
was  desirous  of  visiting  it.  Said  cave  was  merely  a  cropping 
out  of  horizontal  strata  of  sandstone,  of  which  the  upper,  with 
the  superincumbent  earth,  slightly  overhung  the  lower.  Such 
is  the  Caucan  idea  of  a  cave.  In  many  other  places  the  steep- 
ness far  exceeds  that  of  any  artificial  terrace.  Some  of  these 
knolls  are  climbed  by  steps  cut  in  them,  and  in  places  climbing 
\vould  be  out  of  the  question. 

For  this  trip  I  had  selected  a  fiesta,  a  day  in  which  they  re- 
gard it  a  sin  to  do  ordinary  work,  but  are  ready  for  any  extraor- 
dinary job,  as  risking  their  necks  on  a  grassy  slope  or  in  a  deer- 
hunt.  Two  gentlemen  went  with  me,  and  one  of  the  concerta- 


THE  GRASSY  PRECIPICE.  435 

dos  (men  hired  by  the  year),  and  the  carpenter  of  the  hacienda. 
This  carpenter  is  a  character.  He  bears  the  name  of  Pio  Quin- 
to,  but  he  rather  disgraces  it,  for  the  chief  characteristics  of  the 
vagabond  seem  to  be  a  dislike  for  work,  a  love  of  strong  drink, 
geometry,  religious  books,  and  loose  women. 

Our  first  precaution  was  to  take  a  calabaza  full  of  cane-juice, 
here  called  chicha,  but  in  the  valley  of  the  Magdalena,  guarapo. 
His  Holiness  took  this  in  charge,  from  a  natural  affection  for 
liquids  having  even  the  smallest  trace  of  alcohol.  We  dipped 
into  the  woods  at  the  base  of  the  hill ;  then  rising,  we  came  to 
where  it  was  necessary  to  cut  our  way  with  machetes.  From 
here  we  emerged  upon  a  grassy  ridge,  which  terminated  like  a 
buttress  against  the  steep  knoll. 

Here  we  were  obliged  to  use  our  hands,  holding  to  the  grass. 
The  passage  of  each  one  made  the  ascent  of  the  succeeding  more 
difficult.  I  paused  to  take  breath  and  look  at  Pio  V.  I  found 
him  directly  beneath  my  feet,  perspiring  profusely,  and  trem- 
bling like  a  leaf.  He  had  the  consolation  of  knowing  that  if  I 
lost  my  hold,  I  should  carry  him  with  me  to  a  distance  below 
that  it  was  not  very  agreeable  to  fathom  with  the  eye.  I  do 
not  like  climbing  grass  as  well  as  rock.  If  rock  really  is  fast  it 
stays  fast,  but  to  have  only  the  strength  of  a  grass  root  between 
one  and  perdition  is  enough  to  make  him  shiver. 

From  the  summit  the  concertado  had  to  descend  and  bring 
up  the  calabaza,  which  the  carpenter  was  obliged  to  abandon. 
Meanwhile,  around  us  opened  a  prospect  of  great  interest  and 
beauty.  The  western  chain,  along  the  base  of  which  flows  the 
Cauca,  stretches  from  south  to  north  in  almost  a  straight  line, 
and  rising  at  a  single  leap  to  the  greatest  height  between  us  and 
the  Pacific.  Not  an  inch  of  the  Cauca  is  visible ;  so  distant 
and  so  straight  is  it  that  the  trees  hide  it  entirely.  This  forest 
appears  interminable  above  and  below,  and  we  forget  the  broad 
pasture  plains  between  it  and  the  mountains,  and  the  innumer- 
able cultivated  patches  and  houses  which  it  hides. 

But  to  the  eastward  we  turn  with  more  interest.  The  River 
La  Paila,  whose  waters  are  visible  at  our  feet,  has  its  course 
marked  out  by  the  foliage  of  the  guadua,  greener  than  any  oth- 
er, and  more  graceful  than  can  be  conceived.  In  less  than  a 
league  above  there  is  a  spot  destitute  of  trees.  All  such  are 


436  NEW   GRANADA. 

called  llano — plain — whether  they  be  flat  or  hilly ;  and  all  land 
covered  with  thicket  is  called  monte  if  but  a  few  miles  through, 
and  montana  if  more.  This  was  a  pasture,  where,  in  the  war 
of  1851,  were  concealed  successfully  all  the  horses  of  the  plan- 
tation. 

Still  farther  in,  on  the  banks  of  the  Buga-la-Grande,  are  seen 
the  pastures  of  San  Miguel,  where  the  rebels  of  1841  discover- 
ed the  hiding-place  of  the  horses.  These  two  pastures  are  but 
specks  in  the  vast  landscape  of  fertile  valley  beyond  valley,  un- 
trodden by  man  since  the  extermination  of  the  dense  Indian 
population  whom  the  Spaniards  found  peacefully  enjoying  this 
country. 

Was  the  sum  of  human  happiness  increased  by  their  subju- 
gation? Was  their  paganism  supplanted  by  a  religion  more 
moral  or  less  bloody  ?  What  has  become  of  them  all  ?  How 
is  it  that  I  have  not  seen  a  single  Indian  in  all  this  valley? 
Who  will  recount  to  us  the  innocent  loves  that  have  passed  be- 
neath the  perpetual  shade  of  those  trees  on  the  distant  mount- 
ain-side where  murmur  the  head-waters  of  the  La  Paila  ?  Who 
next  will  visit  the  long-deserted  spot  ?  Of  what  race  and  na- 
tion will  be  the  woodman  whose  axe  will  one  day  sound  there, 
prostrating  trees  that  have  grown  three  hundred  years  within 
the  sight  of  the  white  man,  but  where  his  foot  has  never  trod  ? 

Questions  who  can  answer  ?  With  a  strong  desire  of  pene- 
trating this  region,  a  desire  which  perhaps  no  one  yet  born  will 
see  realized,  we  turned  to  descend  by  a  route  less  steep  than  the 
ascent.  Even  this  led  over  the  top  of  a  lower  knoll  scarcely  to 
be  descended,  for  always  descents  are  more  difficult  than  as- 
cents. An  uninterrupted  inclined  plane  inspires  a  fear  much 
like  that  which  we  feel  on  the  brink  of  a  sheer  precipice,  and 
perhaps  even  greater,  when  our  standing  on  it  is  not  perfectly 
secure,  as  it  generally  is  at  the  summit  of  a  precipice. 

In  the  meditative  mood  inspired  by  those  eastward  glances, 
I  stood  on  the  shoulder  of  the  hill.  Some  Fourcroyas  had  there 
thrown  up  their  tall  flower-stems  20  feet  high,  and  their  sum- 
mits were  white  with  blossoms.  These  seldom  perfect  their 
fruit;  but  there  was  sprinkled  among  them  an  abundance  of 
bulbs,  ready  to  take  root  on  their  fall.  I  had  left  my  machete 
at  the  house,  and  I  attacked  a  huge  stem,  five  inches  in  diam- 


CI^NEGA  DE  BURRO.  437 

oter  with  my  patient  pocket-knife.  Slowly  cutting  thus,  my 
thoughts  reverted  to  the  signification  of  my  employment  —  a 
Yankee  whittling  down  a  century-plant — so  small  an  end  after 
.so  patient  a  growth.  Then  I  thought  of  Mexico,  and  that  "  man- 
ifest destiny"  which  neither  fortifications  nor  protocols  can  re- 
sist— no,  nor  yet  the  best  interests  of  both  nations  avert. 

Southwest  from  us  I  saw  on  this  excursion  a  sheet  of  water 
that  they  told  me  was  the  Cienega  de  Burro.  I  had  seen  a  wa- 
ter-lily from  it  which  was  different  from  any  I  .had  seen  before, 
and  determined  to  visit  the  spot ;  so  I  marked  a  place  where  the 
pastures  approached  it  nearest,  and  took  the  bearings.  I  was 
told  that  it  was  impossible  for  me  to  penetrate  there  alone,  but 
I  have  lost  more  than  I  have  gained  by  guides  thus  far,  and  set 
off  without. 

I  penetrated  the  forest  to  a  considerable  distance  before  I 
found  a  path  that  ran  in  a  suitable  direction.  At  one  time,  as  I 
stood  on  some  rich  black  earth,  I  felt  my  feet  sting,  and  saw 
that  the  ground  was  covered  in  all  directions  with  large  tiger- 
ants,  that  were  fastening  their  envenomed  jaws  in  my  feet  wher- 
ever the  alpargatas  left  them  exposed.  I  ran  some  rods,  and 
stopped  still  in  the  midst  of  them.  Again  I  ran  to  a  clear  spot, 
and  was  able  to  dislodge  my  tormentors.  No  harm  came  from 
their  bites. 

At  length  I  came  to  open  water  surrounded  by  quaking  marsh. 
From  the  nature  of  the  marsh  I  expected  one  of  those  "bottom- 
less ponds"  I  have  sometimes  found  in  New  England,  but  I  was 
mistaken.  The  water  was  nowhere  more  than  three  feet  deep. 
I  found  here  a  Sagittaria,  which  looks  to  me  like  my  old  ac- 
quaintance S.  variabilis.  The  Nymphsea  I  spoke  of  was  abun- 
dant, and  of  other  rare  plants  a  bountiful  harvest. 

A  second  visit  here  cost  me  great  labor  with  little  fruit.  I 
cut  half  an  hour  in  a  thicket  of  Mimosa,  advancing  in  all  that 
time  less  than  a  rod.  I  then  abandoned  my  work,  and  made  a 
wide  circuit  round  the  obstacle.  This  time  I  found  my  horse 
had  slipped  his  tether  and  escaped  to  his  native  pasture,  the  Me- 
dio,  and  I  had  to  walk  all  the  way  home,  and  return  next  day 
for  my  montura. 

Near  the  house  are  various  holes  rich  in  water-plants  and 
germs  of  future  musquitoes.  They  were  excavated  for  brick- 


438  NEW   GRANADA. 

earth,  and  are  some  of  them  carpeted  over  with  the  beautiful 
pale-green  Pistia  Stratiotes,  and  in  others  grow  Limnocharis, 
Hydrocleis,  Heteranthera,  a  Nympheea,  and  other  interesting 
plants.  In  still  another  marsh  grew  Pontederia  azurea.  This 
and  Stratiotes  were  common  enough  on  the  coast,  but  here  they 
strangely  reappear  together  after  an  interval  of  hundreds  of 
miles.  Is  the  water  brackish  here  ?  It  may  be  slightly,  though 
I  have  not  satisfied  myself  of  the  fact.  Two  days'  journey  in 
toward  the  Quindio,  however,  are  the  famous  salt-springs  of  Bu- 
lila.  They  belong  to  the  hacienda,  and,  by  an  ancient  royal 
prerogative,  I  am  told  that  they  have  the  right  to  make  salt 
there  without  paying  tax  to  government.  It  is  strange  they  do 
not,  as  the  salt  used  here  comes  from  beyond  Bogota,  and  can 
not  be  cheap. 

The  salt  of  Burila  contains  iodine.  Hence  the  use  of  it  as  a 
condiment  cures  goitre.  I  attempted  to  penetrate  there,  but  my 
plan  failed.  I  am  told  that  plantains  grow  there,  and  the  Phy- 
telephas,  so  the  land  must  rise  very  slowly,  as  we  can  also  sec 
from  Cara-perro.  On  one  occasion,  a  gentleman  and  some  peon? 
profess  to  have  penetrated  two  days  farther,  and  to  have  turned 
back  for  want  of  water.  Even  at  this  distance  from  the  river, 
the  wild  lime  (Citrus  Limetta),  supposed  to  be  an  introduced 
tree,  is  found  growing  wild.  What  an  amount  of  valuable  land 
lies  waste  here !  No  one  lives  at  Burila,  for  they  would  be  lone- 
ly in  there.  It  is  better  to  be  poor  than  to  be  doomed  to  a  soli- 
tary life,  where  fiestas  and  dancing  can  not  come ;  so  they  bring 
salt  from  Cipaquira,  live  in  villages,  dance,  and  are  poor. 

In  damp  ground,  and  near  the  Paila,  I  found  an  Aroid  plant 
of  long  leaves,  with  a  juice  acrid  to  blistering,  and  an  atrocious 
odor,  like  that  of  its  congener  of  the  North,  the  skunk  cabbage. 
This  abomination,  known  as  runcho,  bears  the  name  of  Dieffen- 
bachia.  Alas!  poor  DiefFenbach.  Did  he  think  that  Schott 
hit  the  mark  when  he  honored  him  with  the  name  of  the  most 
disgusting  plant  in  all  New  Granada  ? 

I  made  an  attempt  to  descend  the  Paila  to  the  Cauca,  or  rath- 
er to  follow  a  road  down.  I  went  on  for  miles  (it  seemed, 
through  crooked  paths,  past  estancias,  where  herds  of  swine  arc 
called  to  eat  green  plantains  by  the  side  of  the  fence.  Passing 
dangerous  quagmires,  I  would  come  to  the  hut  of  some  hog- 


A  CATEKPILLAK.  439 

raiser,  who  rarely  comes  out  to  grass.  I  became  tired  of  riding 
over  such  horrid  paths,  left  my  horse  at  a  group  of  huts  called 
Frisolar  (bean-patch),  and  still  went  on.  At  Caracoli  I  found 
some  better  houses,  but  learned  that  the  distance  from  the  Cau- 
ca  was  yet  too  great  for  me  to  accomplish  and  be  out  of  the 
boundless  contiguity  of  quagmire  before  night. 

At  the  Medio  my  attention  was  particularly  called  to  a  large 
solitary  tree  called  Guazimo,  probably  Guazuma  tormentosa.  I 
was  wondering  whether  a  full  catalogue  of  its  epiphytes  would 
not  amount  to  a  hundred  species.  It  seems  to  me  quite  proba- 
ble. Here  and  there  hang  down  cords  of  a  Cactate  plant,  Rhip- 
salis,  called  here  disciplina.  There  a  Bromeliate,  Pitcairnia, 
shoots  out  a  spike  clothed  with  bracts,  the  upper  ones  of  which 
are  scarlet,  like  the  tipping  of  a  trooper's  feather.  Numerous 
Orchids,  of  course,  there  are,  some  of  which  were  brought  down 
for  me  by  the  lazo,  and  one  or  two  species  of  Tillandsia. 

At  a  house  near  the  bridge  I  found  a  bread-fruit  growing. 
It  is  Artocarpus  incisa,  with  a  leaf  similar  to  that  in  the  South 
Seas,  but  the  fruit  is  a  little  smaller  and  full  of  large  seeds, 
while  in  the  islands  it  is  generally  seedless.  It  is  valued  here 
for  the  seeds,  which  are  called  chestnuts.  No  one  had  tasted 
the  baked  pulp.  Here  a  circumstance  occurred  that  gave  rise 
to  a  hearty  laugh  all  round.  I  was  talking  with  a  couple  of 
women  that  I  suppose  are  grandmothers.  They  wore  the  cami- 
sa  as  low  as  the  most  fashionable  ball-dress,  and  as  loose  as  arc 
any  of  their  habits.  Well,  on  the  very  edge  of  the  camisa  of 
one  of  them  I  spied  a  large  caterpillar,  crawling  where  he  was 
in  momentary  danger  of  falling  in.  I  wished  to  remove  the  in- 
truder without  alarming  her,  but,  as  I  put  my  hand  toward  her, 
she  mistook  its  aim.  Her  virtue  was  alarmed ;  she  gave  a  start 
and  a  scream,  and  consummated  the  catastrophe.  I  could  make 
no  answer  but  to  laugh  heartily,  and  tell  her  to  take  it  out  her- 
self then. 

From  the  superior  whiteness  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  Medio, 
the  balls  here  are  rather  attractive  to  the  Paileiios.  I  went  to 
one  myself,  which  I  found,  as  usual,  stupid.  I  must,  however, 
give  some  account  of  it.  There  were  no  seats,  or  not  enough, 
for  the  women,  so  they  sat  on  the  ground  at  the  sides  of  the 
room.  Men  stood  in  two  groups  just  within  the  doors,  and 


440  NEW  GRANADA. 

some  also  were  permitted  farther  in.  Cakes  and  aguardiente 
were  for  sale  in  the  corredor.  Another  table,  more  convenient 
to  the  damsels  within,  has  on  it  in  a  bottle  a  fluid  that  bears  the 
familiar  name  of  a  friend  of  mine,  Miss  Taylor.  They  spell  the 
word  mistela,  translate  it  mixture,  or,  in  this  particular  case, 
cordial.  The  staple  of  the  dances  was  waltzes  and  the  bambu- 
co.  Generally  the  floor  was  filled  with  waltzers.  One  couple 
I  saw  that  were  not  over  eight  years  of  age,  managing  to  skip 
about  so  that  none  of  their  seniors  should  tread  on  them. 
"  The  bambuco  I  have  not  yet  described,  although  it  was  per- 
formed for  my  instruction  at  Fusagasuga.  One  couple  need  the 
whole  floor  in  the  bambuco.  It  is  decided  that  he  is  to  dance 
it.  Then  they  wonder  who  she  will  be.  He  bows  to  her.  She 
borrows  a  pocket-handkerchief  (mine,  perhaps),  and  steps  out. 
'She  moves  to  the  music,  but  ad  libitum  as  to  the  direction,  and 
he  follows  her  motions  as  faithfully  as  a  mirror.  If  she  moves 
east,  he  dances  west ;  when  she  goes  north,  he  goes  south ;  when 
she  turns  a  little,  he  turns  as  much,  and  in  the  contrary  direc- 
tion. Thus  they  advance,  recede,  turn  side  to  side,  or  even  en- 
tirely round ;  so  they  dance  without  ever  touching  each  other, 
till  she  becomes  tired,  drops  a  courtesy,  and  sits  down.  He 
thinks  he  has  acquitted  himself  extremely  well ;  his  carelessly 
turning  up  his  ruana,  to  show  the  brighter  colors  of  the  under 
side,  is  not  bad.  But  his  chef-d'ceuvre  was  that  kick  of  the  dog, 
without  losing  either  time  or  place.  The  quadruped,  surprised 
and  indignant,  looks  round,  and,  could  he  speak  English,  would 
ask,  "  Why  I  ?"  But  his  partner  appears  unconscious  of  this 
achievement ;  not  that  she  is  insensible  to  it,  but  it  is  beneath 
the  solemnity  of  the  occasion  for  her  to  be  betrayed  into  a  smile. 
Her  mamma,  a  coarse  Bogotana,  with  a  cigar  in  her  mouth 
and  a  turban  on  her  head,  really  thinks  that  Solitud  is  not  so 
bad  a  dancer ;  so,  too,  thinks  the  young  occupant  of  the  house, 
and  he  is  a  judge,  for  he  is  an  artist.  We  saw  him  first,  you 
recollect,  in  the  jail  at  Cartago,  but  he  has  forgotten  that  little 
circumstance,  and  we  will  not  remind  him  of  it.  I  see  that  two 
of  his  productions  now  grace  the  walls.  The  San  Cristoval  will 
do ;  but  that  hunting-scene  is  magnificent.  For  music,  we  must 
content  ourselves  with  a  bandola  (banjo)  and  pandarete  (tambo- 
rine),  the  noisy  alfandoque  held  over  the  performer's  head  in  the 


RUSTIC   BALL. 


441 


INVITATION   TO   DINNER.  443 

extreme  left,  and  a  noisier  dram,  which,  though  not  seen  in  the 
sketch,  is  heard  all  over  the  Medio. 

The  torbellino  or  whirlwind  is  another  dance  after  the  bam- 
buco  plan,  only,  as  the  name  implies,  more  violent  in  its  action. 
I  saw  at  this  ball  the  queerest  couple  I  have  seen  yet.  A  little 
girl  of  under  ten  was  called  out — sacada — to  dance  the  bambuco 
with  the  tallest  vaquero  of  the  hacienda.  To  see  her  little  body 
directing  the  movements  of  the  whole  of  his  reminds  one  of  a 
battle  between  a  king-bird  and  a  crow. 

On  the  south  side  of  the  river,  in  the  edge  of  the  woods,  lives 
Sanchez  el  Manco — the  one-handed.  He  is  the  most  thrifty 
tenant  on  the  estate,  and  has  horses,  cows,  swine,  and  rather  ex- 
tensive fields,  including  a  cacagual,  or  cacao-orchard.  Now  and 
then  he  sends  me  word  that  he  has  a  raceme  of  bananas  ripen- 
ing, and  then  he  is  sure  of  a  call  from  me.  His  children  arc 
the  prettiest  in  all  this  pasture,  and  he  likes  my  approbation  of 
liis  proceedings.  One  day  he  wished  to  present  me  with  a  fowL 
I  told  him  I  would  prefer  a  single  leg  of  it,  and  he  invited  me  and 
Don  Damian  to  come  down  next  Thursday  at  2.  On  Thursday 
it  rained,  but  we  did  not  mind  that.  Soon  we  were  dry  in  his 
house,  and  our  horses  and  saddles  safe  in  the  porch.  We  sat 
with  him  an  hour  and  a  hal£  had  a  pleasant  call,  and  then  we 
went  home  without  saying  or  hearing  a  word  about  dinner. 

Sanchez  has  with  him  a  lad  that  is  suffering  from  inflamma- 
tion of  the  eyes.  They  say  he  must  go  blind.  I  tell  them  no. 
If  they  will  send  him  up  to  the  house  daily  for  a  week,  I  will 
make  them  better  in  that  time.  I  give  them  to  understand  that 
medicine  as  well  as  advice  shall  be  gratuitous.  They  promise 
to  send  him,  because  they  can  not  decently  avoid  promising. 
They  never  sent  him,  and,  as  I  left  La  Paila,  the  light  of  day 
was  closing  on  the  poor  boy  forever. 

I  am  reminded  of  another  thing  here  that  surprised  me  not  a 
little.  I  noticed  a  deep  hole  in  the  door-yard  of  Sanchez.  I 
asked  why  he  dug  it  there.  He  said  that  it  was  done  by  mon- 
ey-diggers. They  thought  they  had  ascertained  that  there  wai- 
a  treasure  concealed  there,  and  begged  leave  to  dig  it  out.  The 
one-handed  consented,  on  condition  that  they  would  fill  up  the 
hole.  They  dug,  and,  finding  nothing,  they  were  so  disappoint- 
ed that  they  went  off  and  left  the  hole  open,  saying  that  they 


444  NEW  GRANADA. 

had  worked  enough  for  nothing.  When  a  boy,  I  had  seen  holes 
dug  for  Kidd's  treasures  100  miles  from  tide-water.  There  is 
nothing  new  under  the  sun. 

This  side  of  Sanchez  el  Manco  lives  Timotea,  who  gains  an 
honest  penny  by  making  palm-leaf  hats,  and  sudaderos  or  sad- 
dle-mats of  rushes.  I  engaged  a  sudadero  of  her  for  two  dimes. 
I  went  at  the  appointed  time,  and  it  was  not  done.  I  went 
again,  and  she  had  finished  it  and  sold  it.  She  promised  me 
another.  I  went  for  it,  and,  as  I  asked  why  she  had  not  done 
it,  I  was  whittling  a  fruit  with  my  penknife.  She  had  not  fin- 
ished it  for  the  want  of  two  pieces  of  hide  to  protect  the  rushes 
from  being  worn  by  the  girth.  "Can  not  find  two  bits  of  hide  ?" 
said  I ;  "  here  are  two."  So  saying,  I  picked  up  a  piece  of  hide 
on  which  a  girl  had  been  sitting  to  braid,  cut  off  a  projecting 
corner,  and  cut  it  in  two.  Timotea  was  surprised.  She  evi- 
dently had  not  thought  of  that :  it  ruined  the  seat.  The  next 
time  I  called  my  sudadero  was  ready. 

In  one  of  these  houses  I  saw  a  corpse.  It  was  that  of  a  man. 
It  was  decently  extended  on  the  earth  floor,  with  a  sort  of  robe 
on,  with  a  girdle  of  new  rope  of  cabuya  (Fourcroya).  Several 
candles  were  burning  around,  being  stuck  into  masses  of  mud, 
shaped  so  as  to  answer  for  candlesticks.  A  large  number  of 
persons  were  gathered  around,  quiet  and  thoughtful.  One  was 
saying  a  string  of  Paternosters  and  Ave  Marias  in  Spanish.  1 
was  there  when  they  carried  him  out  on  a  bier  made  on  the 
spot  by  tying  slats  of  guadua  together  with  bejuco.  The  burial- 
ground  is  not  far  from  there.  It  is  in  a  desolate  condition,  and 
the  fence  has  entirely  fallen.  The  grave  was  five  feet  deep,  of 
ample  width,  but  shorter  than  the  body.  An  extension,  or  place 
for  the  head,  was  dug  in  at  the  southern  end,  so  that  when  the 
body  was  properly  placed  in  its  last  resting-place,  it  occupied 
the  whole  grave,  and  in  filling  it  no  earth  would  be  thrown  into 
the  face.  It  was  altogether  as  respectable  a  burial  as  you  would 
find  in  the  same  class  in  life  in  a  Western  state.  All  the  relig- 
ious ceremonies  (simply  prayers  of  laymen)  were  finished  before 
the  burial  began. 

Deaths  had  been  frequent,  and  particularly  in  this  family.  It 
was  decided  to  be  an  epidemic,  and  the  remedy  was  concluded 
to  be  a  procession  in  honor  of  Santa  Barbara — a  rogacion  to  her. 


KOGACION  TO   SANTA  BARBARA.  445 

She  is  the  patroness  of  the  little  chapel  at  La  Paila.  I  had  vis- 
ited said  chapel  once  before,  when,  one  Sunday,  the  piously-dis- 
posed went  in  there  to  pray.  Short  work  we  had  of  it,  for  our 
orisons  were  scarce  begun  when  the  service  was  adjourned.  The 
cause  was  that  the  niguas  had  taken  possession  of  the  holy 
place,  and  were  concentrating  on  the  defenseless  girls  their  myr- 
iad hosts.  I  washed  half  a  dozen  off  my  legs  on  coming  out. 
Now,  however,  it  had  been  sprinkled  and  swept  till  it  would  do 
to  worship  in  very  well. 

The  priest  came  in  the  evening,  bringing  with  him  his  wafers, 
a  chalice  wrapped  in  a  cloth  and  tied  under  his  arm,  and  a  vial  of 
wine  with  a  paper  stopper.  During  the  mass  the  next  morning 
a  poor  fellow  was  attacked  with  epilepsy  in  the  church.  They 
took  him  into  the  sacristy,  and,  to  recover  him,  they  concluded 
to  apply  wine  to  his  nostrils.  The  wine  in  the  bottle  is  uncon- 
secrated ;  so  they  turn  the  vial  up  till  the  paper  stopper  is  sat- 
urated, and  rub  it  on  the  nostrils  and  lips  of  the  patient,  and 
then  put  it  back  into  the  vial.  After  the  consecration  came  the 
procession,  on  a  very  humble  scale,  with  an  image  borrowed  for 
the  occasion.  The  hostia  must  be  carried  under  an  umbrella  for 
want  of  a  canopy,  and  in  default  of  a  better  I  lent  them  mine. 
It  was  whole  when  I  closed  it  last,  many  months  before,  in  Bo- 
gota ;  now  I  find  it  broken,  no  one  knows  when,  where,  or  how. 
After  the  ceremonies  were  over,  I  found  a  cork  that  I  could 
spare,  and  whittled  it  down  to  fit  the  vial  of  wine,  and  threw 
away  the  wad  of  paper. 

The  wife  of  Martin,  who  lives  just  at  our  gate,  is  dead.  He 
takes  on  like  one  distracted.  She  died,  they  say,  of  worms,  a 
very  common  complaint  here,  where  nearly  every  pair  of  jaws  is 
a  cane-mill.  They  kindly  sent  her  medicine  from  the  house, 
but  it  was  not  administered,  because  they  had  no  molasses  to 
give  it  in. 

I  was  called  to  see  a  sick  child,  three  years  old,  between  the 
house  and  the  river.  It  had  worms,  and  was  quite  sick.  The 
mother  wrung  her  hands,  and  cried,  "  Oh  dear !  what  can  moth- 
er do  for  her  poor  little  nigger  girl  ?"  JSegrita  is  a  favorite  term 
of  endearment  here,  even  for  white  children.  I  inquired  what 
they  gave,  and  found  it  was  worm-seed  herb  (Chenipodium  an- 
thelminticum),  which  grew  in  the  door-yard.  They  gave  it  in 


446  NEW   GRANADA. 

aguardiente.  I  directed  the  doses  to  be  increased  in  size  and 
frequency,  and  given  in  molasses.  I  hunted  up  a  cowhagc 
pod  for  them.  I  also  advised  the  discontinuance  of  verdolaga, 
which  is  nothing  but  that  inert  weed  purslane  (Portulacca  ole- 
racea),  so  common  in  the  United  States,  on  which  they  were  re- 
lying, and  told  them  to  come  next  day  and  I  would  give  some 
calomel.  Hearing  nothing  from  them,  I  went,  two  days  after, 
and  they  had  not  complied  with  any  of  my  directions,  as  they 
thought  the  child  "too  weak  to  bear  medicine!"  One  morn- 
ing, soon  after,  I  said,  "There  was  a  ball  last  night?"  "No, 
Sefior."  "But  I  heard  a  drum — was  there  no  dancing  ?"  "Yes, 
Serior,  there  was  dancing,  but  not  at  a  ball.  That  little  girl  died 
last  night,  and  they  were  rejoicing  over  the  little  angel  (ange- 
lito)." 

I  never  saw  this  strange  ceremony,  for  they  preferred  I  should 
not.  The  little  thing  was  tied  into  a  chair,  and  put  on  a  kind 
of  shelf,  like  an  image  for  worship,  high  enough  up  to  leave  the 
whole  room  for  dancing ;  and  there  parents  and  friends  had 
danced  most  or  all  the  night.  The  anticipation  of  this  merry- 
making tends,  I  think,  to  mitigate  the  dread  of  losing  a  child. 
The  ground  of  the  rejoicing  (which  is  also  an  ordinance  of  the 
Episcopal  Church  of  the  United  States  and  England)  is,  that  the 
child  has  gone  to  Limbo,  and  not  Purgatory,  and  will  suffer  no 
inore. 

If  those  who  doubt  which  kills  most,  disease  or  the  doctor, 
would  only  go  with  me  to  the  benches  and  floors  where  lie 
stretched  the  miserable  sick  poor  in  the  Valley  of  the  Cauca, 
they  would  return  with  quite  a  different  idea  of  the  healing  art. 

All  the  ill-bred  children  here  fear  me  or  my  spectacles,  I  know 
not  which.  This  is  particularly  the  case  with  two  little  girls, 
of  five  and  three,  that  live  between  the  house  and  the  river. 
They  are  fat,  very  black,  and  always  naked.  I  met  their  moth- 
er coming  up  from  the  river  with  a  large  mucura  of  water  on  her 
head.  As  soon  as  the  children  saw  me  coming,  they  clung  to 
her  clothes  so  that  she  could  not  walk.  After  I  had  passed  and 
they  began  to  go  on  again — the  little  ones  fearfully  looking  back 
at  me — I  turned  as  if  to  walk  back.  Instantly  they  bellowed, 
and  clung  to  their  mother.  Before  she  had  time  to  look  round 
with  the  heavy  load  on  her  head,  I  was  again  innocently  walk- 


RIDING   A  HOG.  447 

ing  toward  the  river.  I  repeated  my  trick  again  with  the  same 
success,  and  then,  thinking  it  "too  bad,"  I  left  them. 

I  stopped  to  watch  the  motions  of  another  black  rascal,  a  boy 
of  about  ten,  who  was  victimizing  a  pig.  He  had  a  lazo  of  be- 
juco — vine.  The  pig  had  been  found  in  a  pen,  and  noosed 
there.  The  boy  was  still  in  the  pen,  but  the  pig  had  run  out 
through  a  hole  two  feet  square,  that  served  as  a  door.  If  the 
boy  should  stoop  to  go  through  the  same  hole,  the  pig  would 
drag  him  off  in  the  stooping  posture.  And  should  he  climb 
over,  the  pig  would  run  off  with  his  lazo  before  he  got  down ; 
so  he  wound  his  bejuco  around  a  stake  beside  the  hole,  which 
held  his  pig  till  he  had  got  out.  Then  came  a  grotesque  attempt 
at  riding,  with  a  fall  every  two  rods  ;  but  as  he  clung  to  the  be- 
juco, his  steed  could  not  escape  him,  and  so  I  left  them. 

Across  the  river  is  a  little  establishment  that  is  occupied, 
sometimes  for  weeks  together,  by  Mother  Antonia,  an  authori- 
tative old  beldame,  very  useful  on  the  place.  When  corn  is  to 
be  planted,  or  when  so  near  ripe  that  monkeys  and  parrots  begin 
to  steal  it,  she  lives  there,  and  keeps  one  or  two  boys  with  her. 
I  found  her  in  possession  of  two  species  of  quadruped  poultry 
£  should  call  them,  only  they  were  kept  for  their  flesh  and  not 
their  eggs.  The  larger  is  called  guatin,  and  may  be  Dasyprocta 
Acuschy.  It  is  as  large  as  a  cat,  and  its  gait  is  a  succession  of 
leaps,  like  a  rabbit's.  There  was  but  one  of  these,  and  that  final- 
ly ran  away,  pursued  by  dogs.  The  other  animal,  Curi,  was  of 
the  size  of  a  very  young  puppy  of  the  mastiff  breed.  I  suppose 
it  to  be  an  Ansema,  and,  if  it  be  not  the  Guinea-pig,  I  have  for- 
gotten the  difference.  Both  are  raised  for  food  at  the  head  of 
the  Cauca.  The  Curies  keep  in  joints  of  guadua  prepared  for 
their  refuge,  and  eat  plantain  leaves  and  fruits*  They  are  nice 
pets. 

I  went  once  to  visit  Bernabe,  the  district  judge.  He  is  a  ne- 
gro, with  a  mulatto  wife,  Dolores,  and  two  or  three  children,  that 
seem  a  little  lighter  than  she  is.  I  may  be  deceived,  but,  again, 
perhaps  Bernabe  may  be.  The  judge  can  not  read.  He  lives 
on  the  base  of  a  knoll  overlooking  the  pasture  of  Guavito,  and 
his  house  is  supplied  by  a  small  brook  that  flows  down  a  ravine, 
and  is  often  almost  dry,  or  with  no  running  water.  There  al- 
ways happens  in  the  beds  of  these  brooks  to  be  some  water  in 


o 


448  NEW   GRANADA. 

the  charcos  or  holes,  and  as  you  advance  toward  the  source  you 
find  a  very  little  running  in  the  channel.  Cattle  understand 
this,  and,  when  impelled  by  thirst,  follow  a  dry  brook  up  till 
they  come  to  water. 

I  found  Dolores  in  the  kitchen,  and  she  sent  a  little  girl  to 
tell  me  she  could  not  leave  it  just  then.  I  went  out  for  the  sake 
of  seeing  a  Caucana  fairly  busy.  She  was  distilling  aguardi- 
ente. A  large  tinaja,  A,  was  standing  on 
tulpas  (three  stones),  in  the  middle  of  the 
floor,  with  a  fire  under  it.  It  contained  some 
fermented  cane-juice.  The  condenser  was  a 
brass  pan  or  kettle  (paila),  B,  that  covered 
the  mouth  of  the  tinaja.  Under  this  con- 
denser was  a  peculiar  earthen  plate,  C,  called 
DOMESTIC  STILL.  an  obispo — bishop — so  constructed  as  to  re- 
ceive the  drops  that  fell  from  the  under  surface  of  the  kettle,  and 
permit  them  to  run  off  in  the  tube  D.  This  tube  is  a  mere  reed. 
To  prevent  the  free  escape  of  steam,  a  lock  of  cotton  was  put  in 
the  mouth  of  it.  To  keep  the  condensing  kettle  cool  was  Do- 
lores'  present  occupation.  She  dipped  it  full  of  water  from  a 
trough,  and  then  dipped  it  out  again  into  the  trough,  and  thus 
continued  filling  and  emptying  it  incessantly,  while  the  drops  of 
the  dearly-earned  fluid  fell  deliberately  into  a  junk  bottle  placed 
beneath. 

I  went  up  into  the  woods  for  plants,  and  on  my  return  found 
Dolores  released,  and  selling  their  sirup — melado.  I  asked  her 
at  what  price  she  sold  it,  and  she  did  not  understand  me.  They 
have  no  liquid  measures  in  use  here  ;  so  I  asked  her  how  much 
that  tarra  held  which  she  was  using  for  a  measure,  and  she  told 
me  it  held  a  half  dime.  Spirits  are  sold  by  the  bottle  at  a  dime 
a  bottle.  The  bottles  vary  much  in  size,  but  they  are  chiefly 
wine  bottles. 

We  went  down  to  the  house — a  clean  and  lofty  sala,  with 
an  inner  room  adjoining,  and  one  porch  converted  into  a  room 
that  serves  at  once  for  entry  and  bed-room,  with  a  thoroughfare 
through  it.  A  hammock  constantly  swings  in  the  centre  of  the 
sala ;  a  little  table  of  guadua  is  immovably  placed  in  one  corner. 
On  this  I  found  now  displayed  all  their  table  furniture — two 
plates,  a  knife  and  fork.  Some  fried  fish,  from  the  Cienega  de 


ELECTIONS.  449 

Burro,  and  a  roasted  plantain,  were  set  on,  and  I  was  bound  to 
have  a  lunch.  I  did  not  enjoy  the  fish  so  much  as  I  did  the 
plantain,  but  I  ate  it  resolutely.  It  was  kindly  meant.  The 
last  time  I  saw  Dolores  she  gave  me  $3  20  to  buy  some  medi- 
cine for  her,  which  I  have  duly  sent  her.  It  was  a  quack  medi- 
cine, and  my  conjectures  as  to  its  use  would  not  be  much  to  her 
credit ;  but  we  must  make  all  allowance,  and  hope  the  best  of 
her.  Two  of  her  little  girls  are  at  the  Overo,  further  south, 
boarding  and  going  to  school. 

I  went  back  to  Libraida,  the  head  of  the  district,  to  see  an 
election.  A  series  of  them,  four  days  apart,  and  about  six  in 
number,  were  coming  off.  It  was  under  a  new  law,  which  was 
exceedingly  rigid  in  securing  the  rights  of  the  citizen  to  a  se- 
cret vote.  The  elections  must  fall  on  different  days  of  the  week, 
and  of  course  only  one  of  them  on  the  Sabbath.  All  votes  in 
the  same  province  must  be  of  the  same  precise  size,  about  six 
inches  square.  Three  officers  sit  in  a  room,  and  no  man  can 
come  in  except  electors,  one  at  a  time,  with  a  ballot  once  folded 
between  the  thumb  and  index  of  the  right  hand.  The  loss  of 
either  of  these  organs  disfranchises  him.  He  holds  it  out  hori- 
zontally ;  an  officer  takes  it,  unfolds  it  face  downward,  drops  it 
into  a  box,  and  the  voter  goes  out  at  the  back  door,  where  no 
persons  are  permitted  to  remain,  and  jumps  over  the  fence  in  the 
rear.  The  counting  was  a  great  ceremony.  The  declarer  held 
the  ballot  aloft  in  both  hands,  so  that  all  around  could  see  both 
sides  of  it,  and  then  read  it  while  others  recorded  it. 

I  saved  a  copy  of  the  Christian  names  in  the  check-list  as  a 
curiosity.  The  most  frequent  name  was  Jose-Maria  (Pepe),  of 
which  there  were  19  voters  in  a  list  of  324.  Next  most  pop- 
ular was  Joaquin,  17.  Then  followed  Jose,  13 ;  Pedro,  12 ; 
Francisco  (Pacho),  10  ;  Jose- Antonio  and  Manuel,  9  each ;  An- 
tonio and  Juan,  8  each ;  Manuel-Jose,  7  ;  Vicente,  6 ;  Dionisio, 
Ramon,  and  Santos,  5;  Domingo,  Felipe,  Isidore,  Juan-An- 
tonio, Julian,  Mariano,  Miguel,  Tomas,  Torribio,  and  Santiago, 
4  each.  The  following  eleven  names  were  repeated  three  times  : 
Agustin,  Antonio-Maria,  Benito,  Bonifacio,  Eugenio,  Eusebio, 
Fernando,  Ignacio,  Juan-Agustin,  Luis,  and  Nicolas.  There 
were  two  each  of  the  following  twenty  names :  Alejo,  Anselmo, 
Carlos,  Elias,  Emigidio,  Esteban,  Felix,  Hermengildo,  Ildefon- 

FF 


450  NEW  GRANADA. 

so,  Jacinto,  Juan-de-Dios,  Juan-Jose,  Luis- Antonio,  Martin,  Ma- 
nuel-Antonio, Pascual,  Pedro-Jose,  Salvador,  Tiburcio,  and  Ti- 
rnoteo.  Seventy-eight  had  no  tocuyo  among  the  voters.  Their 
names  were  Adolpho,  Alonso,  Ambrosio,  Anacleto,  Anastasio, 
Andres,  Angel,  Angel-Maria,  Apolinar,  Atanasio,  Bartolome, 
Bautista,  Benancio,  Bernabe,  Bernadino,  Bias,  Camilo,  Cancio, 
Cayetano,  Ciriaco,  Claudio,  Cristobal,  Damian,  Damoso,  Enri- 
que, Evaristo,  Exequiel,  Facundo,  Fermin,  Fulgencio,  Hilario, 
Jesus,  Joaquin-Antonio,  Jose-Abad,  Jose-Barbaro,  Jose-Ber- 
nardo, Jose-Eulofio,  Jose-Fortunato,  Jose-Manuel,  Juan-de-la- 
Cruz,  Juan-Maria,  Juan-Nepomuceno,  Justo,  Leandro,  Lino, 
Lucio,  Manuel-Ascensio,  Manuel-Eleaterio,  Manuel-Esteban, 
Manuel- Santos,  Marcelo,  Marcos,  Melchor,  Paulino,  Pedro-An- 
tonio, Pedro-Esteban,  Pedro-Fermin,  Pedro- Valencio,  Pio-Quin- 
to,  Primitivo,  Quinterio,  Rafael,  Raimundo,  Ramon-Nonato, 
Roso,  Ruperto,  Segundo,  Servando,  Silvestre,  Simon,  Sinfo- 
roso,  Teodor,  Traton,  Valentin,  Valerio,  Victor,  and  Victorino. 

Now  all  the  gentlemen  aforesaid,  and  not  a  few  minors — me- 
nores  de  edad — have  been  anticipating  the  advent  of  Sanwhan, 
or,  as  they  spell  it,  San  Juan.  It  is  not  the  saint,  however, 
but  the  day  they  seem  to  expect  as  eagerly  as  any  schoolboy 
his  holidays.  For  many  weeks  I  have  heard  of  the  approach- 
ing San  Juan  as  a  great  time,  like  the  Fourth  of  July  with  us. 
While  Edge,  the  pyrotechnist,  has  been  busy  in  Jersey  City 
with  his  dangerous  playthings  (edge-tools  are  always  danger- 
ous playthings),  Luis,  sitting  under  his  shed,  has  been  making 
cohetes  or  rockets.  He  makes  a  strong  case  of  goat-skin,  and 
puts  in  it  a  tea-spoon  full  of  blasting-powder.  One  end  of  this 
is  attached  to  the  top  of  a  hollow  stem  of  a  woody  grass  chus- 
quea  filled  with  a  mixture  of  pulverized  powder  and  charcoal. 
Both  are  tied  to  a  small  stick,  the  straighter  and  lighter  the  bet- 
ter, but  the  first  that  comes  to  hand  will  answer. 

The  eventful  day  was  Friday,  24th  June ;  but  these  events 
love  to  be  anticipated.  On  Tuesday  a  couple  went  to  Libraida 
'•o  be  married.  Their  return  on  Wednesday  noon  was  celebra- 
ted and  announced  by  a  sufficient  number  of  these  rocket-crack- 
ers described  above.  This  was  also  the  signal  for  the  com- 
mencement of  a  day  ball  in  a  cottage  near  the  gate.  In  the 
course  of  the  afternoon  I  went  down,  and  came  back  with  a  de- 


BRIDE'S  DRESS.  451 

scription  of  the  dress  of  the  bride,  put  on,  of  course,  after  mar- 
riage, for  nothing  but  sombre  colors  are  allowed  in  church.  I 
give  it  for  the  benefit  of  any  who  may  have  occasion  to  adopt 
it  for  the  same  important  ceremony. 

The  hair  was  short  all  over  the  head,  but,  being  as  crisp  as 
wool,  retained  without  difficulty  a  side-comb  of  gold  and  some 
artificial  flowers  on  each  side,  and  a  complete  garland  behind. 
The  ear-rings  were  of  gold,  quite  original  in  their  pattern,  re- 
minding me  of  the  top  of  a  steeple,  the  ball  being  represented 
by  a  stone  of  the  size  of  a  cherry.  On  the  neck  was,  first,  a 
chain  of  gold  going  twice  around ;  second,  a  string  of  pearl 
beads  ;  third,  another  gold  chain.  The  camisa  was  of  fine  white 
muslin  ;  sleeves  of  another  muslin,  shot  with  red,  reaching  be- 
low the  elbow ;  collar  of  the  same,  two  fingers  broad,  falls  down 
from  the  top,  which  is  so  low  in  the  neck  that  it  hangs  off  one 
shoulder,  but,  per  contra,  probably  does  not  extend  half  way  to 
the  feet ;  enaguas  of  de  laine,  slate  color,  with  two  flounces.  A 
belt  of  material  resembling  that  of  gentlemen's  braces  passes 
twice  round  the  waist  and  tucks  in.  Below  this,  the  skirt  sags 
in  front  three  inches.  In  the  mouth,  a  cigar ;  on  the  hands,  four 
gold  rings  with  emeralds  ;  on  the  feet,  nothing,  with  pantalettes 
of  the  same. 

The  ball,  after  lasting  some  sixteen  hours  without  intermis- 
sion, closed  early  on  Thursday  morning.  After  a  ball  or  other 
fatigue  a  swim  is  very  refreshing.  My  affairs  brought  me  acci- 
dentally in  contact  with  a  swimming  party  this  morning.  It 
consisted  of  the  whitest  and  handsomest  girls  of  the  Medio,  the 
young  men  of  the  "  house,"  and  vaqueros.  I  believe  I  have  de- 
scribed the  bathing  dress  of  gentlemen  and  ladies.  I  will  re- 
peat, however,  that  the  men  wear  a  pocket-handkerchief — never 
more  nor  less.  The  girls  wore  less  than  ladies  do,  only  a  skirt 
and  a  handkerchief  tied  around  the  neck  at  top,  and  confined  at 
the  bottom  by  the  skirt.  I  fancy  they  profess  not  to  go  in  at 
the  same  place,  but  in  two  places,  say  five  rods  apart ;  but  they 
do  not  fail  to  invade  each  other's  bounds.  The  women  use  a 
profusion  of  soap. 

As  the  parties  were  about  entering  the  water,  the  mother  of 
some  of  them,  and  grandmother  of  the  younger  ones,  who  had 
staid  behind  to  get  a  child  asleep,  came  riding  down  to  the  riv- 


452  NEW  GRANADA. 

er  at  a  full  gallop,  shouting  "Whoop!  San  Juan!"  This  cry 
from  young  and  old,  male  and  female,  became  familiar  to  my  ears 
before  night.  Their  road  back  was  the  same  I  was  going.  Most 
of  the  men  were  on  horseback,  and  the  females  on  foot.  It  so 
happened  that  the  cavalcade  rode  on  each  side  of  the  pedestri- 
ans, assuming  the  form  described  above  in  the  process  of  cattle- 
driving.  This,  when  perceived,  amused  them  not  a  little,  and 
they  rode  on,  calling  "Toma!  Toma!" 

After  my  return  home  it  was  announced  that  a  party  of  San- 
juaneros  was  approaching  the  house.  Demetrio  loaded  the  gun, 
and  Mother  Antonia  hastened  to  place  cake  and  aguardiente  on  a 
table  in  the  corredor.  The  party  advanced  with  whoopings  and 
rockets,  to  which  Demetrio  responded,  setting  fire  with  the  wad 
to  the  thatch  of  the  cane-mill.  In  the  party  I  counted  twen- 
ty-six females,  every  one  of  them  astride  (to  be  specific)  of  a 
horse,  a  mare,  or  a  gelding.  Without  dismounting,  the  wine- 
glass of  raw  spirit,  without  sugar  or  water,  passed  the  whole 
cavalcade.  The  men  drained  it,  the  women  only  sipped.  They 
went  as  they  came,  on  the  gallop.  I  joined  the  party  some  time 
after  at  the  lower  cottages.  Many  had  flags  made  of  a  hand- 
kerchief, and  adorned  with  ribbons.  All  the  women  wore  shawls 
on  their  heads  under  their  hats  and  ruanas. 

I  found  them  galloping  back  and  forth  on  the  vast  plain,  with- 
out more  aim  than  bees  seem  to  have  when  they  swarm.  One 
would  snatch  another's  flag  and  run ;  others  start  in  pursuit ; 
others  follow  to  see  the  sport.  The  rest  go  so  as  not  to  be  left 
alone.  In  three  minutes  the  whole  party  are  halted  in  a  spot 
half  a  mile  from  where  they  started.  Pio  V.  had  in  his  hands 
the  remains  of  an  unfortunate  hen  that  had  been  snatched  from 
some  twenty  hands,  having  lost  in  these  struggles  much  of  its 
feathers,  its  life,  and,  I  believe,  its  head.  It  was  not  a  very  pret- 
ty plaything — neither  wholesome  to  the  eye  nor  nice  to  the  hand. 
A  cock  had  been  beheaded  according  to  the  rules  on  page  414 
a  little  before  I  joined  the  party. 

Arches  were  erected  in  front  of  two  houses,  ornamented  with 
cloth,  etc.,  and  fruits,  as  plantains,  slices  of  a  huge  species  of 
Citrus  (called  cidra),  and  a  pineapple.  Under  the  arch  you  find 
a  bench  and  a  table,  with  aguardiente  for  sale.  Now  you  find 
them  all  gathered  before  a  house.  Fulgencio,  ex-judge  of  the 


SAN  JUAN.  453 

district,  has  bought  a  bottle  of  spirits  there,  which  must  pass 
from  mouth  to  mouth  till  it  is  empty.  Owing  to  the  time  lost 
in  pouring  into  a  glass,  a  bottle  is  drunk  in  less  time  without 
one,  and,  what  is  surprising,  is  emptied  by  fewer  persons. 

This  was  followed  by  a  race  between  two  horses,  in  which  the 
stakes  were  from  a  dime  or  two  to  perhaps  three  dollars.  My 
conclusion  from  all  this  is,  that  the  beloved  disciple  was  fond  of 
horse-racing,  dram-drinking,  shouting,  and  gunpowder ;  but  per- 
haps it  is  John  the  Baptist  that  is  to  answer  to  these  charges. 

The  day  itself,  Friday,  differed  in  nothing  from  its  vispera  or 
eve,  only  perhaps  the  assemblage  was  more  numerous.  With- 
out doubt,  on  both  days  all  the  saddles  and  bridles  were  in  req- 
uisition, but  the  horses  and  riders  were  not  all  the  same  as  yes- 
terday, and  perhaps  more  were  in  pelo  (without  saddle),  and 
with  halters  for  bridles. 

Saturday  brought  no  remission,  unless  it  be  that  the  cohetes 
had  been  nearly  all  let  off.  Toward  night  there  was  a  bull- 
feast  in  the  front  yard,  but  quite  a  different  affair  from  those  of 
a  higher  grade,  as  at  Fusagasuga.  Young  bulls  are  selected, 
and  yet,  upon  the  whole,  I  had  rather  be  the  bull  than  the  tor- 
eador. He  is  led  into  the  middle  of  the  yard  with  a  guasca  on 
his  horns.  He  is  thrown  down  by  hand,  not  by  a  lazo  on  his 
heels.  A  noose  is  then  put  on  his  heels,  and  that  on  his  head 
taken  off.  On  his  release  he  dashes  at  the  horsemen,  and  they 
avoid  him.  They  provoke  him  by  riding  up  to  him,  and  he 
makes  another  pass  at  them.  A  footman  approaches  with  a  ru- 
ana  in  his  hand ;  the  bull  springs  at  him,  and  he  leaps  upon  the 
fence.  The  bull  shows  no  perseverance,  but  runs  on  as  though 
he  had  not  thought  of  his  adversary.  Another  dexterously 
leaves  his  ruana  on  the  head  of  the  bull.  If  other  measures  fail, 
the  toreador  escapes  danger  by  lying  down.  When,  at  length, 
the  bull  becomes  tired  of  the  sport,  and  no  longer  resents  the 
insults  he  receives,  the  gate  opens,  and  he  runs  off  to  the  pas- 
ture from  which  he  was  taken.  Even  women  were  on  horse- 
back in  the  inclosure ;  but  at  one  time  I  saw  a  "  speck"  of  dan- 
ger. Fulgencio  attempted  to  avoid  the  bull  by  leaping  on  the 
fence,  but,  being  "  half-scratched,"  or  "  a  little  warm"  (media 
rasgado,  un  poco  caliente,  en  pea,  teniendo  jperico,  en  polvo, 
etc.),  was  not  as  active  as  usual,  and  lay  at  the  animal's  feet,  if 


454  NEW  GRANADA. 

not  at  his  mercy.  Where  should  a  bull  begin  on  a  district  judge 
that  can  not  read  nor  write  ?  Not  at  the  head  nor  the  heart. 
Imitating  awkwardly  the  process  of  rolling  up  a  piece  of  cloth 
to  lay  on  the  shelf,  the  bull  began  in  the  middle ;  but,  after  a 
poke  or  two,  the  simultaneous  attack  of  other  toreadores  made 
him  desist. 

Leaving  the  bull-feast,  I  went  to  the  Medio.  Here  the  com- 
pany passed  me.  The  most  natural  comparison  would  be  with 
a  party  of  Pawnees  in  gala  dress  ;  but  I  thought  first  of  the  Bac- 
chantes, the  excesses  of  whom  are  probably  exaggerated  in  the 
accounts  given  us.  Stationary  writers  are  tempted  to  exag- 
gerate in  order  to  say  something  extraordinary :  travelers  have 
no  motive  to  exaggeration  ;  their  only  difficulty  and  their  wisest 
aim  is  to  make  their  readers  comprehend  and  believe  things  as 
they  really  are.  Those  women  who  have  two  shawls  use  the  red 
on  these  occasions,  and  wear  the  blue  on  their  head  in  church. 
Most  ruanas  also  have  red  in  them.  As  women  wear  the  same 
hats  with  men,  and  on  horseback  wear  the  same  ruanas  and  sit 
in  the  same  way,  at  a  distance  it  is  impossible  to  tell  a  woman 
from  a  man. 

Matea,  "  whose  husband  was  killed  in  the  wars"  (very  lately, 
I  should  judge,  from  the  age  of  her  youngest  child),  excited  my 
attention  by  her  hard  riding  and  perfect  abandon.  Do  not  im- 
agine her  a  widow  in  black.  All  the  black  she  wore  was  placed 
by  nature  in  the  cellules  of  the  cutis,  and  as  for  the  fathers  of 
her  children — quien  sabe  f 

Jacinto,  nearly  our  best  horseman,  on  our  return  fell  into  the 
river  from  his  horse,  which  stood  perfectly  still  till  he  mounted 
again,  benefited,  no  doubt,  by  having  taken  a  little  water  with 
his  spirits. 

On  Sunday  again  there  was  horse-racing,  and  we  had  anoth- 
er bull-feast.  I  have  not  spoken  of  the  balls,  though  there  has 
probably  been  one  every  night.  It  is  really  amazing  to  me  to 
see  so  much  drinking,  so  little  drunkenness,  and  no  fighting,  es- 
pecially in  a  people  where  drunkenness  is  not  very  disreputa- 
ble, and  where  they  have  a  civil  war  every  ten  years. 

San  Juan  being  past,  we  move  up  the  river.  We  enter  the 
pasture  of  Guavito.  Down  on  our  left  is  the  corral,  and  on  our 
right  the  house  of  the  black  judge  Bernabe  and  Dolores  the  dis- 


MURILLO.  455 

tiller  stands  on  a  commanding  knoll.  Now  the  forests  approach 
each  other,  and  have  the  appearance  of  having  in  ancient  years 
been  cut  through  with  the  axe.  One  or  two  mud-holes  have 
rather  a  profound  look.  Then  comes  the  River  of  Murillo,  the 
southern  boundary  of  La  Paila,  of  the  canton  of  Cartago,  and 
once  of  the  province  of  Antioquia.  It  is  a  small  stream  in 
which  the  water  barely  runs  in  dry  seasons. 

On  the  left,  after  passing  the  river,  are  the  houses  of  the  Ha- 
cienda of  Murillo.  We  can  not  stop  to  study  the  family  at  the 
principal  house.  I  only  mention  that  here  I  saw  a  female  mon- 
key chained  up :  these  unlucky  and  disgusting  prisoners  are  al- 
most always  of  the  other  sex.  Here,  too,  I  saw  a  cat,  an  animal 
about  as  rare  here  as  parrots  at  the  North.  This  and  the  last 
I  saw  were  both  blind  of  an  eye.  I  can  not  tell  why  the  cli- 
mate disagrees  with  this  cosmopolite  animal. 

My  stay  was  mostly  at  a  smaller  house,  the  guest  of  Don 
Manuel.  He  is  a  wandering  character,  who  seems  to  have 
lodged  here  as  he  drifted  about.  He  has  seen  many  and  queer 
things,  especially  in  Barbacoas  and  Choco,  where  he  has  been 
for  gold,  little  of  which  seems  to  adhere  to  him.  He  is  quite 
communicative,  especially  when  drunk,  for  he  will  get  almost  as 
drunk  as  an  American.  In  one  of  these  confidential  moods  he 
assured  me  that  the  servant,  Catalina,  whom  I  was  teaching  to 
read,  was  his  own  daughter ;  had  been  his  servant  from  child- 
hood, but  knew  not  her  parentage.  The  great  trouble  with  him 
is  that  I  never  know  when  to  believe  him,  drunk  or  sober ;  and 
yet,  withal,  he  is  a  very  intelligent  man,  with  more  than  an  or- 
dinary share  of  learning. 

Catalina  was  now  housekeeper.  Another  Manuel — a  great 
rogue,  as  Don  Manuel  said,  made  up  the  force  of  this  bachelor's 
hall.  Don  Manuel  has  had  a  wife,  but  I  know  not  where  she 
is,  and  also  has  respectable  daughters  somewhere.  Catalina  is 
about  seventeen ;  not  a  bad-looking  girl,  but  rather  too  fond  of 
the  priests,  her  protector  thinks.  She  seems  willing  to  learn,  if 
it  will  do  any  body  any  good  to  teach  her ;  but  when  I  reproach- 
ed him  for  leaving  "  his  daughter"  in  ignorance,  he  said  that  he 
would  willingly  have  taken  pains  with  her  had  she  wished  to 
learn. 

Don  Manuel  delighted  in  Choco  stories  of  snakes  and  secret 


456  NEW  GRANADA. 

remedies  for  their  bites  and  for  hydrophobia  ;  of  ants  whose  bite 
was  mortal  ;  of  creatures  that  are  insects  at  one  part  of  their 
life,  but  then  their  feet  take  root,  their  backs  bud  and  produce 
stalks  of  flowers,  the  seeds  of  which  are  again  walking  animals. 
And  he  tells  what  he  himself  has  seen  and  knows  till  you  per- 
suade yourself  that  he  believes  in  every  word  he  says.  My  own 
opinion,  duly  considered  and  mathematically  expressed,  is,  that 
the  moral  momentum  of  the  man,  found  by  multiplying  the  ac- 
curacy of  his  observation  by  the  fidelity  of  his  narrative,  and 
deducting  for  the  resistance  of  forgetful  ness,  is  not  sufficient  to 
overcome  my  incredulity;  or  algebraically  expressed,  o  x  n—f— 


One  of  his  best  stories  is  of  an  attempt  to  cure  leprosy  with 
the  bite  of  a  venomous  serpent  —  the  equis.  I  expected  that 
heroic  treatment  would  succeed  in  his  hands,  but  the  venom 
appeared  unproductive  of  good  or  harm.  This  particular  equis 
had  been  caught  in  a  lazo,  and  housed  in  a  calabasa.  Don  Man- 
uel discovered,  to  his  astonishment,  that  he  had  a  control  over 
the  beast,  which  would  come  out  of,  and  return  to  his  "  house" 
at  his  command,  as  if  it  understood  Spanish.  He  believed  that 
a  great  many  negroes  and  Indians  in  that  serpentiferous  Choco 
have  antidotes  and  prophylactics  for  the  most  deadly  venom. 
He  tells  of  a  Chocoano  that  had  a  tame  coral  snake,  the  pet  of 
the  whole  family,  till,  in  a  fatal  hour,  she  brought  forth  a  brood 
of  young  ones,  that,  ere  he  knew  of  their  birth  or  they  their  duty, 
had  mortally  bitten  one  of  his  children.  But  it  is  not  fair  to  re- 
peat these  stories  while  I  refuse  to  endorse  them.  They  are,  how- 
ever, but  a  natural  production  of  the  Pacific  coast.  Still  I  must 
admit  that  I  had  to  believe  some  of  his  toughest  stories  in  the 
end,  and  more  of  them  may  be  true  than  I  now  think. 

Once  for  all,  let  me  say  that  I  have  little  confidence  in  snake 
remedies.  The  most  positive  statements  in  respect  to  them  are 
often  entirely  false.  It  is  a  general  impression  that  the  venom 
of  serpents  of  different  species  differs  more  in  power  than  in  na- 
ture. This  is  very  doubtful.  Sensibility  to  poison  certainly 
varies  in  different  species.  A  bite  of  a  rattlesnake  that  would 
kill  a  horse  would  only  make  a  man  deadly  sick  (with  fright 
perhaps),  and  would  not  harm  a  hog. 

A  spontaneous  recovery  from  a  snake-bite  gives  reputation  to 


REMEDIES  FOE  SNAKE-BITES.  457 

an  inert  remedy.  Besides  the  Mikania  Guaco,  of  which  I  have 
never  seen  the  flower,  and  Aristolochia  anguicida,  also  called 
guaco,  there  are  many  other  plants  that  have  the  same  name  and 
the  same  reputation.  All  have  two  distinct  colors  in  the  leaf, 
as  has  the  rattlesnake-leaf  of  the  States — Goodyera  pubescens. 
Many  rely  on  the  cotyledons  of  Simaba  Cedron,  called  cedron  in 
New  Granada.  Besides  extraction  of  poison,  and  the  immedi- 
ate severing  of  the  bitten  limb,  I  know  of  no  surer  way  than  to 
combat  the  symptoms  as  they  appear. 

Leaving  the  broad  plains  of  Murillo  to  the  west,  you  ad- 
vance to  the  Overo.  Overo  means  egg-tree,  and  has  its  name 
from  a  tree  that  bears  a  fruit  in  shape  resembling  an  egg. 
Overo  has  an  unfinished  church — or  chapel  I  suppose  it  is,  for 
it  is  in  the  district  of  Buga-la-Grande.  You  pass  a  small 
stream,  in  a  very  large  bed,  having  every  appearance  of  being 
subject  to  violent  freshets,  and  beyond  you  come  to  the  Porta- 
zuela,  the  residence  of  the  amiable  Dr.  Quintero. 

Dr.  Quintero  is  a  bachelor  of  32,  but  has  living  with  him  his 
widowed  mother  and  three  amiable  sisters — the  youngest  about 
13.  Here  I  had  the  pleasure  of  eating  with  the  family  again, 
"  as  heretics  do."  One  little  thing,  the  first  time  I  ate  here,  took 
me  by  surprise.  It  was  after  a  late  dinner,  between  eight  and 
nine.  Of  course,  chocolate  followed  immediately  on  the  conclu- 
sion of  the  meal.  I  had  finished  my  cup,  and  it  had  disap- 
peared, when,  to  my  surprise,  I  found  another  was  prepared  for 
me.  I  must  be  known,  then,  by  my  reputation  of  drinking  two 
cups  of  chocolate  at  a  sitting. 

Dr.  Quintero  has  a  medical  library,  and  practices  physic. 
He  reads,  however,  neither  English,  French,  nor  German.  In 
this  case,  his  library  can  consist  only  of  old  books  and  text- 
books, for  none  of  the  current  medical  literature  in  this  century 
flows  in  Latin  or  Spanish  channels.  I  have  seen  no  other  doc- 
tor's office,  study,  or  library  since  I  left  Fusagasuga,  although 
there  doubtless  is  one  or  more  practicing  in  Ibague,  and  I  saw 
the  one  that  called  to  cure  the  ear-ache  in  Cartago. 

Dr.  Quintero  does  not  pretend  to  live  by  his  profession.  I 
think  none  but  an  avaricious  man  (and  he  is  not)  could  practice 
here  without  a  loss  even.  He  owns  the  hacienda,  or  uncultivated 
area,  it  may  be  called,  of  Sartinajal,  farther  up,  and  off  the  road 


458  NEW  GRANADA. 

to  the  east.  He  has  also  pastures  and  a  herd  of  mares  near  his 
house.  So  it  seems  as  if  he  learned  his  profession  as  a  matter 
of  respectability — a  proper  mode  of  employing  his  youthful 
years.  And  was  he  not  right  ?  Shall  a  man  "be  thought  crazy 
because  he  prefers  respectability  to  wealth?  I  am  ashamed  to 
think  what  Dr.  Quintero  would  say  of  our  candidates  for  med- 
ical honors  when  he  came  to  fathom  their  motives  for  embracing 
the  profession,  and  found  them  all,  rich  and  poor,  instigated  by 
the  universal  mania  for  wealth. 

I  was  charmed  with  the  first  appearance  of  the  ladies  here, 
but  found  them,  as  it  seems  to  me,  too  timid  to  serve  one  for 
company.  They  appeared  most  at  home,  secluded  with  their 
needles,  in  their  inner  apartment.  I  invaded  their  sewing-room, 
hoping  to  make  myself  at  home  there  too,  but  my  experiment 
was  not  successful.  An  acquaintance  with  them  must  be  the 
work  of  time. 

We  see  in  the  Cauca  no  casas  claustradas,  or  complete 
houses,  containing  a  court  in  the  middle,  except  in  paved 
towns.  I  know  of  none  between  Cartago  and  Tulua.  So,  when 
I  speak  of  Dr.  Quintero's  kitchen,  I  mean  a  separate  building 
used  for  that  purpose.  Dr.  Quintero's  kitchen  has  a  chimney. 
The  design  of  this  is  to  give  draught  to  a  kind  of  furnace  or 
brick  stove,  with  openings  on  top  to  set  earthen  kettles  in.  Had 
it  been  three  feet  higher  it  would  have  passed  out  of  the  roof, 
and  delivered  the  kitchen  from  smoke,  but  they  had  not  thought 
of  that. 

On  leaving  here  the  little  sister  made  me  a  present  of  a  cord 
made  of  horsehair,  to  bind  my  bundle  of  paper  to  dry  plants  in. 
The  advantage  of  it  is  that  it  does  not  injure  by  exposure  to  wet, 
nor  can  dogs  eat  it.  These  exemptions  make  hair  ropes — cer- 
das — invaluable  for  tethering  horses,  a  practice  quite  necessary 
here.  The  best  of  these  which  I  ever  saw  was  also  a  present 
to  me  from  Dr.  Quintero,  quite  a  number  of  horses  having  been 
despoiled  of  their  flowing  honors  on  my  account  one  morning 
while  I  was  there.  The  small  cord  I  have  lost.  Of  all  little 
thefts  I  have  suffered  here,  this  grieves  me  most. 

The  mud-holes — atascaderos — of  the  Cauca  Valley  are  formi- 
dable to  pleasure-travelers,  as  they  are  continually  marring  the 
comforts  of  the  journey.  Many  of  them  are  watercourses  over 


BUGA-LA-GRANDE.  459 

which  there  are  the  remains  of  a  bridge ;  but  if  any  of  them  are 
passable  they  are  at  once  forgotten,  while  the  sloughs  to  be 
crossed  make  you  remember  them  a  long  while.  One  of  these, 
oddly  enough,  occupies  Dr.  Quintero's  gateway,  like  a  sort  of 
moat,  so  that  all  footmen  have  to  climb  the  fence,  for  you  could 
not  walk  through  the  gate  without  wading  in  mud  more  than  a 
foot  deep.  A  formidable  specimen  of  the  same  occurs  half  a 
mile  south  of  his  house,  in  the  road.  I  crossed  it  by  jumping 
my  horse  into  it,  and  then  following  it  up  some  way  till  I  found 
a  place  where  it  was  possible  to  jump  out. 

Soon  we  came  to  a  magnificent  stream,  larger  than  the  Paila, 
but  smaller  than  the  Rio  de  la  Vieja.  The  farther  we  go  up 
south,  the  more  merry  the  streams  are.  Pebbly  bottoms  and 
rippling  currents  were  all  the  country  lacked  below  to  make  its 
beauty  perfect.  This  stream,  el  Buga-Za-grande,  once  rose  so 
suddenly  that,  though  my  baggage  went  over  easily  two  hours 
before  me,  when  I  came  to  it,  having  ladies  in  company,  all 
thoughts  of  passing  it  that  day  were  abandoned.  We  went 
down  the  river  to  a  hacienda  and  passed  the  night,  and  crossed 
at  a  place  much  below  early  the  next  morning.  That  night  I 
slept  (as  far  as  sleep  was  possible)  without  my  hammock.  We 
were  on  our  way  by  sunrise,  threading  lanes  in  a  settlement  west 
of  the  road.  Here  we  passed  a  country  school  in  full  operation 
at  about  eight  in  the  morning.  The  scholars  were  to  go  home 
to  breakfast  at  about  ten. 

North  of  this  river  were  a  large  number  of  scattering  houses 
and  a  church.  Here  is  the  head  of  the  district  of  Buga-la- 
Grande.  This  place  is  memorable  to  me  for  its  oranges,  at  once 
plenty  and  excellent.  For  the  second  time  in  my  life  have  I 
really  found  oranges  in  abundance.  Dr.  Quintero  had  a  good 
supply  to  spare  for  his  guests,  but  here  there  were  more  than 
were  needed.  My  feast  here  will  not  be  forgotten,  though  two 
dimes  would  give  one  as  much  in  New  York  market ;  but  we 
do  not  enjoy  them  so. 

A  few  miles  farther  on  we  came  to  the  stream  and  hacienda 
of  Sabaletas — the  Minnows — the  residence  of  Sr.  Vergara.  At 
the  cane-mill  here  I  drank  a  mixture  of  fermented  guarapo  (here 
called  chicha)  and  boiling  cane-juice,  already  quite  sweet.  I 
found  it  delicious,  and,  in  spite  of  all  warnings,  drank  of  it  very 


460  NEW   GRANADA. 

freely.     To  the  surprise  of  all,  I  escaped  unharmed,  while  they 
looked  for  nothing  less  than  a  fit  of  colic. 

I  came  upon  this  family  one  night  after  they  had  all  gone  to 
bed.  The  sala  has  hammock-loops  in  it,  and,  in  consequence 
of  this  convenience,  in  three  minutes  after  the  bridle  was  off  my 
horse,  the  candle  was  again  extinguished,  and  I  was  comfortably 
reposing  in  my  hammock. 

Senora  de  Vergara  is  a  Venezolana.  I  find  that  I  peculiarly 
like  all  the  emigrants  from  Venezuela  that  I  have  yet  seen. 
Perhaps  they  know  the  heart  of  a  stranger,  being  themselves  far 
from  home,  though  among  their  own  race.  The  daughters  seem- 
ed very  well  educated,  and  were  quite  pleasant  company.  I  had 
with  me  a  dilatory  Granadino,  who  liked  to  chat  with  them,  but 
he  must  be  in  Tulua  that  night.  They  urged  us  warmly  to 
stay,  and,  when  we  constantly  refused,  the  lady  said,  "If  you 
will  go,  you  have  not  a  moment  to  lose.  The  upper  end  of 
the  road  is  not  fit  to  travel  in  the  night,  and  you  will  now  be 
caught  before  you  can  reach  town."  She  almost  drove  us  from 
the  house.  I  was  very  much  delighted  at  the  time,  and  still 
more  when  I  became  convinced  that  her  energy  was  all  that 
saved  me  from  sleeping  in  the  woods  that  night. 

It  was  sunset  when  we  parted,  and  I  had  three  miles  yet  to 
go  to  reach  La  Ribera,  the  home  of  the  Vargas  family,  to  which 
I  introduced  the  reader  at  Cartago.  Much  of  the  way  was 
woods,  and  all  of  it  was  mere  path,  without  a  regular  road.  My 
horse  had  never  been  there ;  but  I  had  been  over  part  of  the 
road  four  times,  and  part  of  it  but  once,  and  then  with  company. 
Starlight  in  a  tropical  forest,  far  from  any  house,  is  nothing  to 
trifle  about,  especially  after  you  have  seen  the  peasantry  skin- 
ning a  leon.  This  animal  (probably  Felis  concolor,  puma, 
painter,  and  panther)  appears  to  range  from  Canada  to  Patago- 
nia. The  individual  which  I  saw  was  killed  in  the  forest  of 
the  river.  It  seemed  little  inferior  in  strength  to  his  African 
namesake.  The  tigre  (Felis  onca,  jaguar,  ounce,  catamount— 
if,  indeed,  these  animals  are  the  same  all  over  the  continent)  is 
weaker,  more  agile,  and  more  cruel,  as  is  generally  supposed. 

I  had  for  my  consolation  the  fact  that  deaths  from  wild  beasts, 
venomous  serpents,  mad  dogs,  and  lightning  are  very  rare  among 
mankind.  True,  there  might  be  more  from  serpents  and  wild 


BENEFITS  OF  A  GUIDE.  461 

beasts,  were  it  the  custom  to  be  roaming  about  in  deep  woods 
in  the  night.  My  horse  could  see  the  path  though  I  could  not. 
I  could  still  see  enough  to  keep  my  general  direction,  and  all 
accidents  were  in  our  favor,  so  we  came  through  safe. 

I  found  it  once  a  day's  journey  from  La  Ribera  to  Dr.  Quin- 
tero's,  thanks  to  the  marvelous  efficacy  of  having  a  guide.  Said 
guide  was  Lorenzo,  the  body-guard  to  Sefior  Flojo  of  La  Paila. 
I  had  assured  Sefior  F.  that  we  ^should  get  home  by  night. 
"  No,  you  will  not,"  says  he ;  "  you  will  sleep  at  Portazuela." 
"I  shall  certainly  be  home."  "You  certainly  will  not,"  says 
the  good  Emilia.  But  I  had  not  counted  on  the  benefits  of 
having  a  guide. 

Lorenzo  contrived  to  get  ahead  of  me  at  one  place  before  we 
reached  the  highway.  Soon  I  detected  him  leading  me  off  a 
little  to  the  right.  "  You  are  out  of  the  road,"  I  shouted.  "  I 
know  the  way,"  he  answered.  Soon  it  was  obvious  that  we 
were  not  approaching  the  highway.  I  reined  in.  "  This  is  the 
best  way  for  us,"  said  he ;  "I  have  an  errand  at  Sartinajal."  I 
love  to  see  new  road ;  there  was  no  real  necessity  of  my  calling 
at  Sabaletas,  so  I  gave  in. 

Five  minutes  after,  I  happened  to  look  at  my  arm ;  the  shirt 
sleeve  that  covered  it  seemed  to  be  made  of  strainer-cloth.  "  I 
have  not  my  own  shirt  on,"  I  exclaimed.  "  Yes,  Seiior,  you 
have,"  said  the  confident  Lorenzo.  "But  I  tell  you  I  know! 
Look !"  and  I  raised  my  hand,  not  to  strike  him,  but  to  put  him 
down  more  surely  by  ocular  demonstration.  "  Indeed  it  is 
yours,  Seiior.  The  fact  is,  that  a  cow  ate  a  sleeve  out  of  it, 
and  the  Lady  Emilia  put  in  another  of  cloth,  as  like  it  as  she 
could  get."  I  looked  at  the  other  sleeve ;  it  was  a  "  fact  truth." 
Guides  do  know  some  things. 

They  were  glad  to  see  me  at  Sartinajal.  The  woman  turned 
out  to  be  Lorenzo's  mother.  The  house  was  a  mere  hut,  and 
no  white  people  lived  there,  or  perhaps  ever  had.  I  must  get 
off  and  go  in,  indeed  I  must.  The  saddles  were  taken  off,  and 
the  horses  tethered.  I  must  look  at  the  country,  for  I  was  far- 
ther from  the  river  than  any  other  house  stands  that  I  have  seen. 
There  is  little  or  no  timber  growing  about  here.  The  country 
was  rolling,  and  most  of  it  much  higher  than  the  bottom  of  the 
valley.  It  seemed  a  boundless  pasture,  ready  to  be  occupied  if 


462  NEW  GRANADA. 

there  were  any  one  to  herd  and  care  for  the  stock.  From  here, 
too,  I  could  see  the  distant  pasture  of  San  Miguel,  which  I  had 
seen  from  the  top  of  Cara-perro.  It  was  now  many  miles  to 
the  northeast. 

It  was  not  time  to  go  yet,  indeed  it  was  not.  I  must  eat 
something.  No  matter  if  I  was  not  hungry,  I  must  eat  out  of 
compliment.  I  suspect  that  the  dog  Lorenzo  had  brought  with 
him  a  couple  of  ripe  plantains  to  roast  for  me  here,  as  the  sur- 
est bait  to  catch  a  Yankee.  After  eating,  I  must  not  go  yet. 
There  was  something  drying  that  his  mother  must  iron  and  send 
to  Dr.  Quintero's.  Now  the  cat  was  out.  It  was  very  true 
that  I  should  not  see  La  Paila  that  night.  The  dry  pasture 
furnished  me  nothing  to  study.  I  had  exhausted  my  occupa- 
tions and  my  patience. 

We  left  Sartinajal  at  nearly  5.  In  a  mile  or  two  we  came  to 
the  Buga-la-grande,  and  followed  down  the  river,  crossing  its 
bed  five  or  seven  times.  Had  the  river  been  higher,  we  must 
have  taken  a  longer  road.  We  crossed  it  last  at  dusk,  just  as 
it  began  to  rain.  Soon  I  could  not  see  the  ground.  I  could 
still  make  out  Lorenzo's  form  before  me.  When  that  disappear- 
ed, I  asked  him  to  throw  up  his  dingy  ruana,  that  I  might  see 
his  shirt.  Said  shirt  was  not  very  white,  and  at  last  night  shut 
that  in,  and  I  could  not  see  my  horse's  ears.  I  had  strained  my 
eyes  till  my  head  ached  as  if  it  was  splitting,  and  that  ugly  ra- 
vine was  to  be  crossed.  I  shut  my  eyes  but  opened  my  ears. 
Now  a  jump  downward,  and  my  horse  is  in  the  ditch.  Much  I 
feared  that  we  should  fall  backward  or  sidewise  in  scrambling 
out.  All's  well  that  ends  well.  At  15  minutes  past  8  I  was 
safe  under  the  hospitable  roof  of  Dr.  Quintero,  and  resting  my 
aching  head  on  the  table.  I  breakfasted  next  morning  at  Mu- 
rillo,  and  at  1  P.M.  was  at  La  Paila,  blessing  my  stars  that  I 
did  not  often  have  a  guide. 


THE  GKAZIER'S  FAMILY.  463 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

THE   GRAZIER   AT   HOME. 

Honse-building  of  Guadua,  Mud,  and  Thatch. — Plan  of  House. — Servants. — Ab- 
lutions.— Breakfast. — The  Dairy. — Dinner. — A  Sabbath. — Baptism. — Mar- 
riage.— Dinner  and  Ball. — Drinking  without  Drunkenness. — The  Bundi. — 
Carrying  home  the  Girls. — A  Love  Affair. — Lay  Baptism. — Lying. — A  Week's 
Sickness. — Diet. — Monkey  and  Fowl. — Slaughter  of  Beef. — Turtles. — Agricul- 
ture.— Prices. — Fertility  and  Poverty :  Abundance  and  Hunger. 

I  WISH  to  give  a  more  accurate  picture  of  domestic  life  among 
the  first  families  in  the  Cauca.  For  this  I  have  selected  the 
Vargas  family,  as  I  wish  strictly  to  avoid  entering  the  domain 
of  fiction  by  combining  the  occurrences  of  two  or  more  families. 
I  write  this  in  the  earnest  hope  that  no  reader  will  recognize 
the  originals,  or,  if  unfortunately  it  should  be  otherwise,  that 
the  discoverer  will  be  so  good  as  never  to  make  known  their 
name  or  residence  to  any  inhabitant  of  South  America. 

It  will  be  recollected  that  when  I  introduced  Senor  Eladio 
Vargas  to  the  reader,  I  mentioned  that,  in  the  times  of  slavery, 
they  were  wealthy.  Besides  this  estate  of  La  Bibera,  and  their 
mines  in  Choco,  that  now  yield  not  a  dollar,  they  have  two 
haciendas  in  this  valley,  though  there  is  a  lawsuit  with  an  ad- 
verse claimant  to  one  of  them.  La  Eibera  alone  could  support 
them  handsomely  were  it  well  managed,  but  their  chief  desire 
seems  to  be  to  keep  things  along  here,  and  to  spend  in  Cartago 
all  they  can  scrape  from  this  estate,  while  I  doubt  whether  the 
others  yield  any  thing  at  all. 

I  hardly  can  guess  what  was  the  theory  on  which  the  house 
was  arranged  with  regard  to  the  highway.  It  faces  nearly  to 
the  north,  stretching  from  east  to  west  137  feet.  It  is  covered 
with  thatch  of  Carludovica,  here  called  iraca,  and,  when  on  the 
roof,  paja.  The  ground  inclines  slightly,  so  that  while  the  west 
end  is  some  two  feet  above  its  surface,  the  opposite  extremity 
is  a  hole  dug  as  much  into  it.  Still  the  floor  is  not  quite  level. 
Said  floor  is  of  brick  in  the  finished  rooms  and  corredores,  and  of 


464 


NEW  GRANADA. 


earth  in  the  others.  The  walls  are,  like  those  of  ordinary  cot- 
tages, entirely  of  three  materials — guadua,  bejuco  (vine),  and 
mud.  Posts  of  guadua  were  placed  erect  on  the  ground  at  dis- 
tances of  a  few  feet ;  slats  of  guadua  are  tied  to  them  both  with- 
in and  without ;  all  the  space  between  them  is  filled  with  mud ; 
then  the  whole  is  plastered  over  with  mud  for  mortar ;  part  has 
been  whitewashed  with  lime,  and  it  is  intended  at  some  future 
day,  when  they  can  get  lime  enough,  to  give  the  whole  a  second 
coat. 

Lime  is  hard  to  get.  It  is  an  ugly  thing  to  carry  in  sacks 
on  mule-back.  I  know  of  but  two  lime-kilns  in  all  the  Valley 
of  the  Cauca — one  at  Vijes,  the  other  five  miles  above.  These 
are  not  worked  much,  for  the  demand  is  so  small,  and  transport- 
ation so  difficult ;  so  plastering  and  bricklaying  is  all  done  with 
mud,  and  even  whitewash  is  a  luxury  for  want  of  wheels. 

In  theory  the  house  is  115  feet  by  19,  and  divided  into  8 
rooms,  each  19  feet  from  north  to  south,  but  of  various  widths. 
But  the  roof  projects  so  far  over  as  to  cover  a  corredor  7  feet 
wide.  Seven  more  rooms  are  constructed  all  around  the  house 
on  this  corredor.  Besides  these,  in  the  rear  are  two  more  houses, 
one  adjoining,  and  the  other  a  little  removed  from  the  principal 
house.  All  this  is  made  clear  by  the  following  diagram  : 


THE  GRAZIER'S  HOME. 


Here  the  corredores  are  numbered  in  Roman,  and  the  rooms  in 
Arabic.  The  principal  corredor,  XVIII.,  extends  nearly  half 
way  round  the  house.  Just  outside  of  it  is  a  trench  made  by 
stamping  of  horses,  the  wallowing  of  a  few  hogs  belonging  to 
the  servants,  and  the  occasional  visits  of  horned  cattle,  etc. 


PLAN  OF  THE  HOUSE.  465 

This,  in  the  rainy  season,  furnishes  an  admirable  supply  of 
musquitoes.  On  account  of  them,  as  it  is  not  healthy  to  sleep 
under  a  musquito  net  in  the  house,  I  hung  my  hammock  in  this 
corredor  in  front  of  room  2.  I  afterward  occupied  No.  9,  which 
was  rather  extravagantly  furnished  with  a  large,  coarse  table 
on  trestles,  two  bedsteads,  which  served  me  only  for  tables, 
shelves,  book-case,  etc. ,  etc. ,  and  one  chair.  My  hammock  swung 
from  corner  to  corner,  so  far  as  the  re-entering  angle  would  per- 
mit. My  table  stood  before  the  window,  which  was  a  grated 
opening  two  feet  square,  with  a  shutter.  I  had  also  a  large 
table  for  day  use  outside  the  door  in  the  corredor,  but  I  could 
not  leave  things  there  in  the  night,  because  the  goats  used  to 
jump  up  on  the  table  to  sleep. 

No.  1  was  bachelor's  hall.  It  was  15  feet  by  19,  matted,  had 
a  door  and  a  window,  and  3  bedsteads.  Gentlemen  travelers 
sometimes  slept  here,  and  more  or  less  of  the  males  of  the  fam- 
ily. No.  2,  21  feet  by  19,  was  the  female  room.  Don  Ela- 
dio,  his  wife,  and  their  sisters,  occupy  it  when  they  are  here. 
His  mother  rarely,  if  ever,  comes.  It  had  a  window  down  to 
the  floor,  and  a  door  opening  into  No.  3,  a  narrow  room  7  feet 
by  19,  occupied  by  either  sex  according  to  convenience.  This 
has  a  window,  and  is  a  thoroughfare  from  the  women's  room  to 
the  sala,  No.  4.  This  last  is  19  feet  square,  has  doors  in  all 
its  four  sides,  with  shutters  to  all  of  them.  I  mention  this  be- 
cause most  inside  doors  here  are  mere  door-ways,  and,  if  closed 
at  all,  it  is  with  a  curtain.  The  size  of  the  remaining  rooms  is 
6,  11,  20,  and  14  feet  by  19  :  No.  5  only  is  entirely  completed, 
and  possession  of  it  is  disputed,  as  it  were,  between  the  young- 
est son  Carlos  and  a  hired  man  or  two. 

If  we  pass  out  the  back  door  of  the  sala  into  the  corredor 
XI.,  we  at  once  enter  on  the  domain  of  a  small  army  of  female 
servants.  A  brick  bench  (poyo)  runs  along  the  wall,  about 
20  inches  high  and  24  broad.  East  of  the  door  this  serves  for 
a  forge  for  minor  cookery,  as  chocolate-making,  etc.  Next  the 
door,  on  both  sides,  it  is  used  for  seats.  The  next  portion  is 
used  for  a  dresser  for  dishes,  etc.,  by  day,  all  of  which  must  be 
carried  in  at  night  for  fear  of  the  goats.  The  west  end  is  built 
into  a  tinajera,  pierced  for  three  tinajas,  with  a  space  under  them 
where  pans  may  be  placed  to  catch  what  water  exudes  through 

GG 


466  NEW  GRANADA. 

the  unglazed  earthen  vessels.  Near  this,  too,  is  the  grinding- 
stone,  with  a  place  under  it  to  put  iire  to  heat  the  stone  when 
chocolate  is  to  be  ground.  It  ought  to  be  a  little  over  100°  F. 
Again,  in  the  extreme  south  end  of  corredor  XIX.,  a  continua- 
tion of  this,  are  two  large  kettles  of  cast  brass  (pailas),  each  a 
section  of  a  sphere,  set  in  an  arch.  They  are  used  for  making 
sweetmeats  on  a  large  scale,  and  for  other  extraordinary  opera- 
tions, as  soap-making. 

Over  all  this  space  Pilar  reigns  supreme.  She  is  a  mulatto 
woman  of  about  20  or  25.  Her  mother  is  the  negress  who 
rules  in  the  Vargas  kitchen  in  Cartago.  As  to  her  father,  it  is 
a  matter  that  defies  my  conjecture.  She  directs  affairs,  sets 
the  table,  waits  on  it,  sews,  teaches  three  little  black  girls  to 
read,  using  the  corredor  as  a  school-room,  and  is,  in  fact,  the 
most  efficient  person  of  either  sex  on  the  whole  place,  and  does 
more  work  than  any  two  of  them. 

Pilar,  the  little  girls,  and  one  or  two  of  the  adults,  sleep  in 
No.  10,  separated  from  my  room  only  by  a  partition  so  thin  that 
I  can  hear  them  at  their  prayers  occasionally  of  an  evening  after 
the  family  have  all  gone  to  bed.  The  rest  of  them  sleep  in  23 
and  24,  or  in  the  kitchen,  or  wherever  they  take  a  fancy.  Rooms 
21  and  22  are  store-rooms  or  pantries  ;  25  is  the  kitchen  ;  and 
26  combines,  I  think,  a  kitchen,  store-room,  and  sleeping-room 
for  the  old  cook.  In  the  centre  of  the  kitchen,  25,  is  an  arch 
about  8  feet  long,  pierced  for  several  earthen  kettles,  with  a 
stump  of  a  chimney  about  as  high  as  a  man's  head.  An  oven, 
O,  a  few  rods  east  of  the  kitchen,  under  a  small  roof  of  its  own, 
completes  the  conveniences  of  the  house  of  La  Eibera.  The 
kitchen  is  infested  with  negro  children,  dogs,  and  smoke,  and,  if 
seen  detached  from  every  thing  else,  would  resemble  the  abode 
of  a  family  of  savages,  or,  rather,  of  a  small  tribe  of  them.  It 
can  become  no  dirtier — can  be  made  no  cleaner. 

Here  lies  Roso,  a  little  boy  of  whose  parentage  I  know  noth- 
ing, if  parents  he  ever  had,  stark  naked,  rolling  in  the  dirt. 
There  again  is  a  babe  (naked,  of  course)  with  a  piece  of  meat  in 
his  fist.  He  is  the  offspring  of  Escolastica,  a  black  of  about 
17.  Older  than  Roso  is  Cristina,  who  generally  wears  an  ena- 
guas,  often  rent  from  top  to  bottom,  or  with  a  breadth  worn  out 
of  it,  but  never  clean.  Isabel,  older  still,  and  always  naked 


KITCHEN  AND  ITS  OCCUPANTS.  467 

down  to  the  hips,  wears  enaguas.  Two  girls,  still  older,  but 
under  10,  sometimes  add  to  this  a  mantellina  or  blue  woolen 
shawl.  Pilar  would  be  glad  to  keep  dogs'  noses  and  children's 
fingers  out  of  the  dishes  preparing  for  us,  but  the  others  care 
nothing  about  it,  provided  they  do  not  take  so  much  as  to  be 
missed,  and  her  authority  is  faintly  felt  in  the  kitchen. 

A  desolate  shed  of  a  chapel  serves  us  for  worship,  as  we  are 
too  far  from  the  Church  of  San  Vicente.  It  is  without  pictures, 
images,  pulpit,  seats,  or  floor,  and  has  but  one  confessional  and 
one  altar.  In  the  sacristia  are  some  vestments  for  ordinary 
service,  some  cheap  implements  for  mass,  a  respectable  old  mis- 
sal, and  a  complete  set  of  wooden  toys  for  the  amusement  of  the 
infant  Savior  (Nino  Dios — Boy-God),  when  they  make  a  pese- 
bre — manger — at  Christmas, 

A  blacksmith's  shop,  and  shed  that  will  hold  two  horses ;  a 
cane-mill,  that  is  never  used ;  the  foundations  of  one  building, 
never  to  be  completed,  and  the  ruins  of  another,  that  fell  down 
in  the  last  revolution  before  being  roofed,  make  the  sum  total 
of  buildings. 

There  is  no  garden,  and  no  fruit-trees  that  are  of  any  use,  ex- 
cept a  single  second-rate  orange-tree.  Three  other  fruit-trees 
yield  nothing  that  is  not  stolen  before  it  is  ripe.  Such  is  La 
Ribera.  Let  us  now  see  how  a  day  passes  there. 

We  are  not  early  risers  at  the  house,  as  the  family  residence 
is  denominated  by  the  cottagers ;  but,  as  the  hour  of  six  ap- 
proaches, also  approaches  the  sun  to  the  horizon,  and  would  be 
visible  soon  after  but  for  the  clouds,  that  render  a  rising  or  set- 
ting sun  a  thing  unknown  here.  As  rises  the  sun  rises  also 
Pilar,  the  "mistress  of  keys,"  crosses  herself,  and,  I  conjecture, 
dresses  herself — perhaps  washes  her  hands  and  face.  She  sets 
herself  to  sweeping  the  back  corredor,  the  sala,  and  front  corre- 
dor,  a  task  hardly  worthy  of  the  chief  housekeeper  when  per- 
chance goats  or  cows  may  have  made  the  front  corredor  their 
dormitory.  Escolastica  rises  from  a  hide  laid  on  the  ground, 
leaving  sprawling  naked  there  the  son  of  (she  says)  Dionisio, 
and,  without  any  dressing  or  washing,  sets  herself  about  some- 
thing-that  bears  the  semblance  of  work.  Three  negritas,  naked 
from  the  waist  upward,  one  with  her  skirt  rent  in  three  from 
top  to  bottom,  come  and  place  themselves  astride  the  wall  of  the 


468  NEW  GRANADA. 

corrector — -pretil — to  see  if  any  body  passes  in  the  distant  high- 
way. This  mode  of  sitting  appears  more  agreeable  to  the  ne- 
gras  than  in  a  chair :  Escolastica  and  others  older  find  it  con- 
venient at  times.  Estefana,  the  cook,  rakes  open  the  kitchen 
fire,  and  lights  her  cigar ;  or,  if  the  fire  is  out,  strikes  a  light 
with  flint  and  steel  as  readily  as  you  would  put  on  your  coat. 
Her  tinder  is  the  huge  pith  of  the  Fourcroya — maguey. 

Eoso,  the  negrito,  the  happy  possessor  of  his  nudity  and  not 
a  thread  more  in  the  world,  comes  from  his  nest,  and,  without 
any  fear  of  wearing  out  his  clothes  or  blacking  his  skin,  sits 
down  on  the  floor  to  play.  Joaquina  leaves  her  lair,  and  sits 
down  till  milking-time.  Josefa  rises  and  walks  about.  The 
men-servants  make  their  appearance  from  various  nooks  where 
they  have  passed  the  night.  Manuel  goes  to  his  smithy,  that 
he  may  not  be  seen  about  the  house  idle. 

Manuel  Estevan,  Dionisio,  some  shades  lighter,  and  Jacinto, 
many  shades  darker,  also  take  their  seats  on  the  pretil,  a  bench, 
and  my  table,  and  appear  to  be  busy  with  a  part  of  a  saddle,  a 
bridle,  and  a  halter.  Aureliano,  Cosme,  and  Gregorio,  three 
white  boys,  who,  under  the  name  of  servants,  contrive  to  escape 
with  half  the  work  one  boy  ought  to  do,  post  themselves  in  the 
corredor  to  watch  the  operations  of  three  dogs.  Volcan  and 
Enamorado,  led  by  Folia,  selected,  at  5  o'clock,  one  of  the  milch 
cows  for  their  amusement,  and  they  have  worried  the  poor  thing 
ever  since ;  but  they  are  all  cowards,  and  dare  not  bite  her. 
Ramon,  a  larger  boy,  neither  whiter  nor  blacker  than  the  other 
two,  creeps,  as  if  with  sore  toes,  to  the  inclosed  pasture — potre- 
ro — and  drives  several  horses  into  a  yard ;  throws  a  lazo  over 
an  old  white  horse,  which  is  too  lazy  or  too  well  bred  to  run, 
and  goes  off  to  an  estancia  to  look  for  plantains  for  breakfast. 

Carlos  Vargas,  the  youngest  of  the  gentlemen,  catches  another 
with  more  difficulty  but  more  dexterity,  and  calls  Jacinto  from 
his  busy  idleness  to  saddle  it,  and  also  another  for  himself. 
They  start  off  together  to  the  open  pasture,  and  will  return  at 
breakfast-time  or  a  little  after.  They  go  to  see  if  any  thing  has 
happened  there.  Toledo  (this  is  his  surname),  the  horse-break- 
er, has  tied  each  "  hand"  of  a  colt  to  the  corresponding  foot,  and 
is  riding  him  round  and  round  in  a  very  small  circle  in  the  sug- 
ar-mill. Pepe  Gomez,  a  relative  living  in  the  family,  has  ridden 


RISING  AND  ABLUTIONS.  469 

off  to  the  cacagual,  or  chocolate-orchard,  to  see  if  any  cacao 
needs  gathering,  and  to  see  if  the  hogs  have  broken  in.  Pepe 
and  Antonio  come  forth  from  No.  1  or  No.  2,  as  the  case  may 
be,  and,  without  attending  at  present  to  their  ablutions,  sit  down 
in  the  corredor  to  read  a  Spanish  translation  of  a  French  novel, 
published  as  a  sort  of  extra  by  the  Correo  de  Ultramar  in  Paris. 
I  have  not  particularly  introduced  these  younger  brothers  of 
Don  Eladio.  Of  Pepe  I  will  only  say  that  he  is  worth  any 
two  of  his  brothers  in  business,  energy,  and  reliability,  and  only 
inferior  to  the  pious  and  dignified  Eladio.  Antonio,  who  is  but 
17,  has  quite  an  active  turn  of  mind,  that  loves  to  exercise  itself 
in  horse-racing,  dancing,  cock-fighting,  in  the  administration  of 
baptism  and  medicine,  and  other  useful  offices. 

Prompt  washing  is  not  the  custom  here,  and  I  have  been  led 
gradually  to  defer  my  ablutions  till  near  breakfast-time.  I  have 
gone  to  the  tinajera,  and  found  there  a  bowl  and  water,  but  no 
dipper  nor  servant ;  half  an  hour  after  I  would  find  a  dipper, 
but  no  bowl ;  and  the  next  time  all  that  I  wanted  except  water, 
for  now  the  tinajas  are  all  empty.  Soap  is  sometimes  imported 
— that  made  here  is  black  and  pasty.  In  all  cases  it  is  dear. 
Ashes  are  not  sold,  nor  is  soap-making  a  trade;  neither  are 
the  berries  of  the  Sapindus  (chambimbi)  of  as  much  use  as 
might  be  expected.  They  are  abundant,  being  uneatable  by 
animals,  and  about  half  an  inch  in  diameter. 

Now  that  I  have  marshaled  my  dramatis  personce,  do  not 
imagine  that  I  am  going  to  follow  them  all  through  the  day.  I 
will  only  say  farther  of  their  color  that  Pilar  and  Josefa  are 
mulattoes  (the  former  good-looking  and  intelligent),  and  the 
rest  of  the  females  of  pure  African  blood,  except  a  babe  three 
eighths,  perhaps,  white.  In  number  I  make  23,  and  of  the  fam- 
ily there  are  enough  in  Cartago  to  swell  the  total  to  about  40. 

Now  there  passes  out  of  the  front  door  a  procession  of  five 
women  and  girls,  carrying  on  their  heads  an  earthen  jar,  a  round 
calabash,  a  long  calabash,  a  tarro  of  guadua  of  two  joints,  and 
a  green  jar  in  form  of  a  double  cone.  Those  who  can  not  carry 
their  vessels  mouth  upward  h 
orange  for  a  cork.  They  go  to 

Joaquina  makes  her  appear*         in  th« 
on  her  head,  and  in  her  hands  a  hair  rope  and  two  totumas. 


470  NEW   GRANADA. 

cows  have  been  kept  from  their  imprisoned  "  sons"  all  night, 
not  without  some  lowing  and  bleating.  Gregorio  admits  one 
of  them.  Her  delighted  offspring  rushes  to  the  maternal  bos- 
om, but  alas !  only  to  find  a  halter  on  his  nose,  the  middle  of 
which  ties  his  head  to  her  "arm,"  while  the  end  is  employed 
in  tying  her  heels  securely  together.  Both  generations  are  in 
the  milker's  power,  and,  with  a  totuma  in  her  left  hand,  she  pro- 
ceeds with  her  right  to  rob  him,  before  his  face  and  eyes,  of  the 
last  drop  that  pays  the  trouble  of  extraction. 

Mother  and  son  are  permitted  to  pass  the  day  together  in  the 
potrero,  and  two  of  the  boys  shut  up  the  calves  at  night.  As 
they  perform  this  service  on  horseback,  it  is  not  always  done 
with  the  fewest  steps  possible.  After  milking  14  cows,  the  old 
lady  puts  her  jar,  with  about  four  or  five  gallons  of  milk,  on  her 
head,  and  returns  to  the  store-room,  21.  Part  of  the  milk  she 
boils.  Often  a  part  is  taken  for  our  morning  chocolate.  In  the 
rest  she  rinses  a  pound  of  tripe,  and  adds  lime-juice  and  too 
much  salt.  The  coagulated  milk,  when  drained  of  whey,  is 
cheese ;  of  course,  this  can  not  be  kept  like  ours. 

Cosme  is  set  to  cut  up  (jpicar)  sugar-cane  for  a  horse  that  is 
tied  in  the  corredor  of  the  sugar-mill.  He  borrows  a  machete 
of  an  older  servant,  who,  like  a  soldier  or  ancient  knight,  wears 
it  always  in  his  sheath.  The  pieces  must  not  exceed  two  inch- 
es in  length,  and  ought  not  to  include  the  whole  of  any  of  the 
hard  nodes  in  the  same  piece.  Aureliano,  who  has  been  present- 
ed with  a  machete  for  his  own,  is  sent  to  an  estancia  to  feed  in 
the  same  manner  a  horse  tied  there  to  fatten.  He  is  kept  there 
to  save  the  trouble  of  carrying  cane.  His  stable  is  a  thicket  of 
plantains,  to  one  of  which — an  herb  8  inches  in  diameter  and 
12  feet  high — he  is  tied.  He  takes  him  to  the  river  to  wash 
and  water  him,  an  operation  that  costs  an  hour,  for  the  rogue 
of  a  rider  must  take  time  to  swim,  and,  as  he  finds  two  or  three 
amphibious  negritos  to  help  him,  it  can  not  be  done  in  less.  He 
can  whip  any  of  them,  and  even  whipped  Ramon  the  other  day, 
who  is  much  older  and  bigger  than  himself;  he  is  the  pertest 
little  scamp  in  the  hacienda,  and  Gregorio  and  Cosme  have  to 
"  stand  round"  when  he  is  by. 

But  breakfast  is  ready.  Some  dried  beef — tasajo — has  been 
boded  in  water  to  make  a  soup — sopa — thickened  with  cakes  of 


BREAKFAST.  471 

maize,  or  with  plantains  roasted  and  crushed.  The  meat,  reduced 
to  a  form  resembling  oakum,  has  been  fried.  It  is  so  dry  that, 
if  laid  on  a  sheet  of  letter-paper  instead  of  a  plate,  it  possibly 
might  neither  wet  nor  grease  it.  It  is  rather  insipid.  The  bor- 
ders of  the  platter  are  covered  with  slices  of  plantain,  fried. 
When  perfectly  ripe  they  are  delicious ;  a  little  earlier  they  are 
insipid  and  hard ;  green,  they  do  not  fry  them.  Generally,  a 
roasted  plantain  is  found  by  each  plate.  Entirely  ripe,  they  are 
very  good ;  a  little  short,  they  are  mealy  and  insipid ;  green, 
they  are  hard  and  (to  me)  uneatable.  Unfortunately,  the  peas- 
antry and  the  servants  generally  eat  up  the  ripe  ones,  and  leave 
us  with  green  ones.  But  there  is  another  dish ;  and  of  this  you 
must  take  the  testimony  of  an  enemy,  for  I  detest  it.  It  is  call- 
ed sancocho,  and  is  the  staple  of  both  meals,  and  with  the  peas- 
antry generally  the  only  dish  except  roasted  plantains.  For 
this  dish,  take  any  quantity  of  tasajo  (that  which  did  not  spoil 
in  drying  is  best),  with  or  without  bones,  fat  or  lean ;  put  it  in 
an  earthen  pot — olla — with  a  pailful  or  less  of  water ;  add  shreds 
of  green  plantain,  and,  if  you  have  them,  pieces  of  squash  and 
yuca-root  (Manihot  utilissima).  Potatoes,  turnips,  carrots,  par- 
snips, onions,  and  beets  would  be  admissible,  but  the  first  can  not 
grow  here,  and  the  others  are  universally  neglected.  Sweet  po- 
tatoes— batatas — inferior  to  ours,  so  that  I  doubt  their  identity, 
are  sometimes  added,  and  tomatoes.  This  mixture  is  then  boil- 
ed. The  bogas  eat  it  with  spoons  of  totuma  from  the  shields 
of  tortoises;  the  peasantry  from  broken  ollas  and  totumas  with 
spoons  of  wood  or  totuma ;  the  respectable  familes  eat  it  with 
heavy  ancient  spoons  of  massive  silver  from  soup-plates  of  the 
old  "  willow  pattern"  of  our  early  days.  A  fried  egg  or  two,  or 
as  many  as  there  are  covers,  may  be  found  on  the  table.  If 
boiled,  they  are  eaten  with  salt  only.  As  you  are  closing  your 
meal,  a  small  cup  of  thick  chocolate  is  set  upon  your  plate,  or 
offered  you  on  another  plate.  Saucers  are  seldom  used  as  such. 
Your  chocolate  contains  about  two  cubic  inches  of  cacao  and 
brown  sugar — panela — ground  together  on  a  warm  stone. 

The  tables  are  not  well  attended  here,  considering  the  dispo- 
sable force  of  a  family.  More  than  half  this  charge  may  fall 
upon  the  ama  de  Haves — "  mistress  of  the  keys."  I  ought  to 
add  that  breakfast  concludes  with  water.  Two  or  three  turn- 


472  NEW  GRANADA. 

biers,  or  silver  cups,  are  brought  in  on  a  tray.  They  are  suc- 
cessively filled  from  small  tin  cups  till  all  have  satisfied  their 
thirst.  Then,  if  a  priest  be  present,  but  never  otherwise,  the 
"  Lord's  Prayer"  and  some  others  are  said  by  way  of  returning 
thanks. 

It  is  now  about  half  past  10.  How,  or  when,  or  where  the 
servants  have  breakfasted  I  know  not,  only  that  it  is  not  to- 
gether, nor  at  a  table,  nor  with  knives  and  forks.  Things  wear 
as  quiet  an  aspect  after  breakfast  as  before.  Viviana  has  caught 
every  hen  that  has  shown  a  disposition  to  lay,  and  shut  them 
up  to  secure  the  eggs.  The  negritas  now  set  themselves  down 
in  the  corredor  of  the  store-room  to  sew,  under  the  direction  of 
Josefa,  or  to  read,  taught  by  Filar.  Private  instruction  here  is 
no  better  than  the  schools ;  and  a  mulata,  a  slave  18  months 
ago,  just  able  to  read,  is  no  better  than  the  public  teachers,  nor 
much  worse.  The  first  book  is  the  "Cartilla."  It  contains 
the  alphabet,  and  abs,  and  some  prayers.  This  is  followed  by 
the  "  Citologia,"  no  more  interesting  to  youth.  I  have  looked  at 
every  book  in  which  children  learn  to  read,  and  have  not  yet 
found  a  child  who  had  any  thing  to  read  that  could  interest  him. 
An  old  law-book ;  "Artillery  Tactics  ;"  the  "Theory  of  Human 
Liberty  and  Constitutional  Rights,"  a  Protestant  tract — any 
thing  that  is  not  damaged  by  being  worn  out,  or  missed  if  lost, 
is  good  enough  for  a  reading-book. 

More  horses  are  now  saddled,  and  all  the  young  gentlemen 
— including  the  three  adult  servant  gentlemen,  who  neither  dig, 
nor  chop,  nor  go  afoot — are  scouring  over  the  plains ;  but  wheth- 
er they  are  looking  after  stock,  or  chatting  with  the  peasant- 
girls  and  projecting  another  ball,  is  more  than  I  can  tell.  Nor 
can  I  tell  much  better  what  the  women  are  doing — not  mak- 
ing the  beds,  nor  washing  the  windows,  nor  sweeping  the  floors, 
nor  making  puddings  nor  pies.  The  patter  of  quick  footsteps 
would  indicate  a  cataclysm  or  a  frolic.  The  voice  of  cheerful 
song  here  never  comes  from  one  whose  hands  are  busy.  They 
are  not  brewing,  and  it  can  hardly  be  possible  that  they  are 
baking,  although  they  have  two  or  three  forms  of  cake  made 
of  the  starch  of  yuca  (not  the  Yucca  of  botanists) ;  but  these 
are  rare.  One  of  them,  the  suspiro — sigh — greatly  resembles 
that  Northern  confectionery  called  a  sugar  kiss,  in  being  filled 


DINNER.  473 

with  minute  air-cells,  only  a  "sigh"  is  larger  than  a  "kiss," 
and  not  so  sweet.  Another  kind  of  cake,  almojavana,  almost 
exactly  resembles  sponge  cake.  You  can  hardly  persuade  your- 
self that  it  contains  no  flour. 

One  by  one  the  men  drop  in.  The  long  table  is  again  cov- 
ered with  a  cloth.  Pilar  carries  in  dishes  from  the  back  corre- 
dor,  and,  carefully  wiping  them,  puts  them  on  the  table.  It  is 
noticeable  that  there  is  never  a  knife  or  spoon  too  much  on  the 
table,  but  not  always  enough.  The  entire  absence  of  teaspoons 
is  remarkable.  All  their  spoons  are  a  little  larger  than  our  des- 
sert spoons,  but  contain  more  silver  than  our  largest.  All  the 
excess  of  silver  and  other  table  furniture  must  be  kept  carefully 
locked  up,  for  servants  are  very  careless  here.  The  store-room, 
too,  must  never  be  left  open,  and  the  fruit-orchard  ought  to  be 
always  under  lock. 

The  dinner  begins,  as  the  breakfast  did,  with  soup.  The 
everlasting  sancocho  is  sure  to  be  present ;  but  in  addition  to, 
or  in  place  of  the  meat-oakum,  perhaps  you  may  find  a  guisado, 
much  like  baked  beef.  It  is  often  very  tender,  and,  I  think, 
superior  to  our  ordinary  New  York  cooking.  After  the  meat 
comes  a  teacup  or  small  bowl  of  boiled  milk,  eaten  generally 
with  roasted  plantains  ;  to  this  succeeds  sliced  brown  sugar 
(panela),  sirup,  or  sirup  and  milk  boiled  together,  or  some  other 
sweetmeats.  The  varieties  of  these,  from  squash  to  fig,  are  in- 
numerable. With  these  and  with  chocolate,  they  never  fail  to 
mingle  their  extemporaneous  cheese ;  or,  if  this  be  wanting  to 
their  chocolate,  they  substitute  its  principal  ingredient  —  salt. 
After  the  dulce  comes  water,  served  as  in  the  morning.  Dur- 
ing a  meal  they  rarely  or  never  drink,  unless  it  be  wine  or 
aguardiente. 

The  sun  is  now  hastening  toward  the  hills  that  separate  us 
from  the  Pacific,  and  finally  enters  the  immovable  belt  of  cloud 
that  surrounds  the  horizon. 

The  almanac  does  not  give  the  time  of  rising  or  setting  of  the 
sun,  for  there  is  not  much  difference  at  different  seasons  of 
the  year,  and  it  would  be  useless  to  calculate  it  when  it  could 
not  be  used  for  regulating  clocks,  if  they  had  them  ;  but  clocks 
and  almanacs  are  alike  scarce.  The  almanac  is  only  to  show  the 
day  of  the  month,  the  saint  of  the  day,  and  the  rising  of  the 


474  NEW  GRANADA. 

moon.  The  moon  exerts  an  imaginary  but  important  influence 
upon  agriculture  here.  They  salt  cattle  and  kill  trees  in  the 
decrease  of  the  moon — el  menguante.  They  plant  trees  in  el 
creciente — the  increase  of  the  moon ;  and  I  know  of  none  who 
doubt  its  influence.  I  have  found  no  evidence  of  it  any  more 
than  that  the  pupils  of  cats'  eyes  indicate  the  state  of  the  tides, 
as  some  believe.  They  pay  no  heed  to  the  sign  of  the  zodiac  in 
which  the  moon  happens  to  be. 

The  calves  are  now  shut  up.  Escolastica  goes  out  and  col- 
lects weeds  (Sida — escoba)  for  a  new  broom.  The  negritas  set 
themselves  to  playing  at  marbles  with  corozos,  the  seed  of  a 
thorny  palm,  in  the  front  corredor.  A  peasant  from  a  little  dis- 
tance comes  to  the  house.  Five  dogs  bounce  out  upon  him ; 
the  peon  coolly  draws  his  machete ;  Volcan,  more  zealous  than 
prudent,  receives  on  his  "  hand"  a  machetazo,  which,  for  a  day 
or  two  to  come,  will  make  him  put  down  three  and  carry  one. 
A  boy  brings  in  three  eggs  tied  in  a  cloth  to  exchange  for  a 
candle,  both  bearing  the  value  of  a  cuartillo.  Ramon  brings  in 
a  load  of  cane  on  a  horse.  The  pack-saddle  has  two  horns — 
one  before,  the  other  behind.  To  each  of  these  is  hung  a  hook 
on  each  side,  and  on  two  of  these  hooks  rests  the  cane.  He  tells 
me  his  load  has  not  slidden  off  the  hooks  more  than  once  in  com- 
ing. All  the  cane  for  the  cane-mill  is  carried  in  this  way  or  on 
human  heads.  A  horse  draws  four  guaduas  at  a  time  (six  if 
seasoned)  with  one  pair  of  hooks,  the  other  ends  resting  on  the 
ground.  If  a  single  guadua  is  wanted,  it  is  tied  to  the  horse's 
tail;  the  boy  mounts  his  back,  and  rides  home  in  triumph. 
Sometimes  a  man  on  horseback  draws  a  guadua  for  a  quarter 
of  a  mile  only  with  a  lazo. 

It  begins  to  grow  dark.  The  cattle  and  horses  approach  the 
houses.  The  wildest  stay  near  the  cabins  in  the  edge  of  the 
forest ;  the  tamer  come  to  those  at  the  foot  of  the  hills.  The 
goats  come  down  from  the  hills  or  in  from  the  plain,  and  would 
get  into  our  very  beds  if  we  would  let  them.  These  precau- 
tions look  as  if  the  "lions,"  "tigers,"  and  "bears"  of  which 
they  speak  (humble  imitations  at  best)  were  dangerous ;  but, 
after  examining  all  the  stories  I  have  heard,  I  can  not  certainly 
learn  that  they  ever  did  any  harm,  except  by  frightening  peo- 
ple. A  cricket — chillador — in  a  corner  of  the  room  makes  a  dis- 


EVENING  EMPLOYMENTS.  475 

tracting  noise,  incredible  to  one  who  has  not  heard  it,  and  we 
are  compelled  to  kill  him.  The  wind,  which  blew  from  the  sea 
all  the  morning,  is  now  blowing  seaward,  bringing  from  the 
woods  an  ample  delegation  of  musquitoes.  Viviana  comes  from 
the  kitchen  with  a  furnace  of  fire  on  her  head.  She  sets  it  in 
the  corredor,  and  with  chips,  cobs  of  maize,  and  fragments  of 
guadua,  makes  a  smoke  to  drive  away  the  musquitoes.  The 
family  sit  on  a  bench,  some  heavy  arm-chairs,  and  the  pretil  or 
railing  of  the  corredor.  Antonio  has  his  guitar.  Jacinto  has 
his  tiple  in  the  back  corredor,  where  the  women  are  smoking. 
Two  negritas  are  waltzing  "  on  the  sly"  in  the  dining-room. 

At  length  a  lighted  candle  is  placed  on  the  dining-table.  A 
negro  comes  to  have  a  demand  written ;  for  such  things  the  fam- 
ily good-naturedly  find  time,  and  paper,  and  pens,  and  ink,  and 
law.  Pepe  Gomez  brings  in  the  writing-case  and  makes  out 
the  document.  Pepe  is  reading  aloud  in  the  "Piquillo  Aliaga" 
by  Scribe.  Toledo  and  others  are  listening,  and  at  every  sur- 
prising passage  they  exclaim  "  Caramba!" 

Pilar  carries  the  dishes  to  the  inner  closet,  leaving  behind  two 
knives,  and  a  definite  number  of  cups,  spoons,  saucers,  and 
plates,  and  two  tumblers.  She  spreads  the  table-cloth,  puts  on 
the  plates,  a  knife,  a  piece  of  "  cheese,"  and  the  spoons.  Some 
green  plantains,  fried,  and  then  flattened  between  two  stones, 
come  in.  Next  enter  three  cups  of  chocolate  on  a  plate.  Each 
of  these  is  set  on  a  plate  by  itself.  The  rest  are  brought  in  in 
the  same  way.  A  plate  or  bowl  of  dulce  is  set  on  the  table, 
and  the  saucers  to  eat  it  from.  Last  comes  the  water ;  and  the 
tumblers  are  filled  and  refilled,  some  drinking  from  the  tin  cups, 
till  all  are  satisfied.  This  ends  the  eating  and  drinking  for  the 
day.  This  arrangement  is  seldom  varied  from,  except  by  omis- 
sions. Rarely  is  there  the  addition  of  a  cup  of  strong,  clear 
coffee,  without  milk,  but  with  considerable  sugar.  This  is  taken 
at  rising.  Granadans  do  not  take  chocolate  or  coffee  before  ris- 
ing, as  travelers  say  some  people  do. 

It  is  now  nine.  The  men  soon  retire  for  the  night  to  beds 
and  benches,  which  pass  into  each  other,  as  the  naturalist  says, 
by  imperceptible  gradations.  Then  is  heard  the  voice  of  the 
women  in  praying  the  Rosary,  a  sound  easily  recognized  after 
hearing  it  once.  To  this  succeeds  the  furious  crying  of  Cristi- 


476  NEW  GRANADA. 

na,  who  fell  asleep  on  the  floor  somewhere.  They  have  hunted 
her  up,  and  are  carrying  her  to  the  room  No.  10.  She  squalls 
half  an  hour,  and  after  that  nothing  more  is  heard  except  the 
hum  of  musquitoes,  the  fighting  of  dogs,  the  bleating  of  calves 
and  maternal  responses,  and,  worse  than  all,  the  diabolic  noises 
of  the  goats. 

Another  day  has  passed  without  making  any  more  change  in 
the  Valley  of  .the  Cauca  than  on  the  face  of  the  ocean.  And  so 
have  passed  generations.  If  some  Rip  Van  Winkle  should 
wake  from  a  sleep  of  two  centuries,  the  only  thing  to  surprise 
him  would  be  the  dawn  of  civil  and  religious  liberty. 

I  can  not  better  continue  my  picture  of  this  family  than  by 
faithfully  noting  the  actual  events  of  a  single  Sabbath.  On 
Saturday  night  the  bells  of  the  chapel  rung  a  little — just  enough 
to  say  that  there  would  be  mass  in  the  morning.  The  good  Cura 
leaves  San  Vicente  occasionally  for  a  day,  and  comes  and  spends 
the  Sabbath  with  us  ;  and  well  he  might,  for  more  than  half  his 
salary  comes  from  this  hacienda.  I  went  to  church  in  the  morn- 
ing, as  I  always  do  when  I  have  the  opportunity.  Well,  in  the 
first  place,  we  had  one  baptism  and  two  fractions :  that  is,  two 
of  the  babes  had  received  just  enough  baptism  to  save  them  from 
hell  had  they  died  before  this  time,  but  not  enough  for  decency. 

The  priest  met  the  unbaptized  at  the  door  of  mercy,  or  side  door 
of  the  church.  One  assistant  held  a  little  plain  wooden  cross, 
and  another  a  lighted  candle.  After  the  prayers  he  put  salt  in 
the  babe's  mouth,  and  went  to  the  font,  an  excavated  stone,  on 
a  pedestal,  with  a  hole  for  the  water  to  run  off.  Here  awaited 
the  other  two  babes.  One  was  held  on  the  left  arm.  "Put 
the  head  there,"  said  the  priest.  The  woman  turned  herself,  so 
as  to  bring  the  head  to  the  required  spot ;  the  feet  of  the  babe 
were  more  out  of  their  place  than  ever.  An  exclamation  of  im- 
patience from  the  fasting  Cura  led  an  assistant  to  aid  in  placing 
the  babe  on  the  right  arm.  First  he  put  spittle  on  the  ears  and 
nostrils  of  each ;  then  he  completed  them  one  by  one.  He  took 
from  his  portable  baptism-box  a  silver  vial,  with  a  rod  passed 
through  the  silver-capped  cork,  and  some  cotton.  With  the  rod 
he  made  a  cross  on  the  breast  of  each,  and  another  between  thn 
shoulders,  and  wiped  the  oil  off  again  with  the  cotton.  The 
dress  of  one  tried  the  Cura's  patience  again.  He  exclaimed, 


BAPTISM  AND  MAREIAGE.  477 

amid  his  prayers,  "  Better  bring  your  babe  naked  than  with  a 
dress  tight  at  the  neck."  I  held  it  away  with  two  fingers  as 
well  as  I  could.  Then  the  babe's  head  was  held  over  the  font, 
face  downward,  and  holy  water  was  poured  from  the  little  silver 
teapot  on  the  crown  of  the  head.  Another  cross  was  made  on 
the  crown  of  the  head  with  the  oily  rod,  the  head  covered  for  a 
moment  with  a  white  cloth,  and  the  task  was  done.  These 
prayers  would  occupy  a  Protestant  clergyman  about  two  hours, 
but  our  curate  dispatched  them  very  soon.  If  he  skipped  a 
word,  or  pronounced  it  wrong,  he  left  it  for  next  time. 

He  went  back  to  the  vestry,  put  on  different  robes,  and,  again 
accompanied  by  the  cross  and  candle,  met  a  marriage  party  at 
the  door  of  mercy.  These  were  more  awkward  than  the  moth- 
ers. First,  the  groomsman,  who  happened  to  be  the  husband 
of  the  bridesmaid,  placed  himself  next  the  bride.  Then  the 
bridegroom  tried  to  insinuate  himself  between  the  bride  and 
bridesmaid,  apparently  intending  to  be  married  to  one  of  them 
at  least.  When  the  parties  were  placed  aright,  the  priest  read 
them  a  long  address,  telling  them,  among  other  things,  that  it 
was  their  duty  to  endeavor  to  raise  up  heirs,  not  so  much  to 
their  goods  as  to  their  religion,  their  faith,  and  their  virtue. 
The  bride,  though  never  married  before,  need  not  excite  his 
anxiety  on  that  point.  Not  only  were  two  of  her  children  wit- 
nesses of  the  ceremony,  but,  besides,  she  was  visibly  in  a  state 
which  is  here  designated  by  the  word  embarazada.  I  am  aware 
that  this  detracts  materially  from  the  poetry  of  my  picture,  but 
I  can  not  help  it ;  the  sole  merit  of  my  sketch  is  its  fidelity.  I 
must  add,  then,  that  the  older  of  her  two  children  appeared  to 
be  three  fourths  black,  and  the  younger  three  fourths  white. 
The  mother  w^as  a  mulata,  the  other  three  adults  of  pure  Afri- 
can blood.  All  were  barefoot ;  the  females  wore  that  plain  dress 
which  alone  is  permitted  to  rich  or  poor  in  church — the  head 
covered  with  a  shawl,  the  body  with  a  dark-colored  skirt  (saya). 

The  address  through,  the  priest  directed  them  to  join  their 
right  hands.  This  was  accomplished  after  much  delay.  When 
the  priest  asked  the  bride  if  she  was  willing  to  have  this  man 
for  her  husband,  she  made  no  answer.  He  repeated  the  ques- 
tion ;  no  answer.  "  Say  yes  or  no,"  exclaimed  the  priest;  she 
said  "  yes."  Two  rings  were  taken  from  the  small  silver  tray 


478  NEW  GRANADA. 

used  in  the  mass.  The  priest  put  one  on  the  finger  of  the  bride- 
groom, and  the  latter  put  the  other  on  the  little  finger  of  the 
bride.  It  was  large  enough  for  her  thumb,  and  she  instantly  re- 
moved it  to  another  finger.  Then  the  priest  took  eight  or  ten 
reals,  half  francs,  and  dimes,  from  the  tray,  put  them  in  the 
hands  of  the  bridegroom,  and  he  in  those  of  the  bride.  In  the 
course  of  the  subsequent  prayers  the  fasting  priest  fairly  lost 
his  patience  at  their  awkwardness,  as  might  be  seen  by  the 
angry  tones  and  snappish  accent  he  gave  his  Latin.  Then  he 
stopped  short  off,  and  administered  a  rebuke  in  plain  Castil- 
ian. 

These  prayers  over,  their  hands  still  joined,  the  priest  passed 
the  band — estola — of  his  robe  round  the  man's  wrist,  and  led 
the  pair,  followed  by  the  other  pair,  to  the  altar.  They  knelt, 
and  mass  commenced.  Two  golden  chains,  united  by  a  ribbon, 
were  put  on  their  necks.  Two  yards  of  white  cloth,  with  a 
fringe,  was  spread  over  her  head  and  his  shoulders.  Regularly, 
they  ought  to  have  partaken  of  the  Eucharist.  I  afterward 
asked  the  priest  why  they  did  not ;  he  informed  me  that  the 
bride's  situation  did  not  admit  of  the  delay  and  fasting  that 
were  necessary  to  prepare  them  for  that  sacrament. 

Mass  over,  every  one  is  at  liberty  to  amuse  himself  as  he 
pleases,  for  Sunday  is  a  holiday,  and  it  is  a  sin  to  work  more 
than  two  hours,  but  no  sin  to  play.  At  night  I  found  that  an 
extraordinary  activity  had  prevailed  in  the  kitchen  ;  fresh  porjc 
and  chicken  appeared  on  the  dinner-table,  and  a  bottle  of  aguar- 
diente. At  the  head  sat  the  Cura,  and  a  vacant  space  opposite 
me  was  at  length  filled  by  the  four  who  had  figured  so  conspicu- 
ously in  the  morning.  I  was  not  prepared  for  this.  If  I  must 
eat  with  negroes,  I  will  do  it  with  a  good  grace,  but  I  could 
well  have  spared  the  company  of  an  "  embarazada"  bride.  Dur- 
ing the  dinner  we  had  the  music  of  two  octave  flutes  and  a 
drum. 

This  was  ominous  of  the  evening ;  in  short,  bad  as  was  the 
weather,  we  had  a  ball.  When  I  went  for  my  chocolate,  I  found 
the  good  Cura,  with  his  gown  tucked  up,  dancing  the  bambuco 
with  unusual  grace  with  one  of  the  nymphs  of  the  pastures.  As 
I  was  making  my  retreat,  young  Carlos,  about  16,  was  waltzing 
with  an  aged  manumitted  slave  that  had  been  his  nurse,  and 


DANCING  THE  BUNDI.  479 

that  of  all  his  brothers  and  sisters  before  him.  Later  in  the 
night  was  a  scene  yet  more  curious,  as  I  am  told.  The  pretty 
little  Mercedes,  of  17,  the  white  man's  daughter,  waltzed  with 
the  negro  blacksmith,  Miguel.  He  appears  over  70,  is  very 
tall,  very  grim,  and  is  the  most  pious  man  on  the  plantation. 
It  must  have  been  a  sight.  I  tried  to  persuade  her  to  it  again 
at  a  day  ball,  but  she  would  consent  only  on  the  condition  that 
I  should  first  waltz  with  her.  She  even  dismounted  for  this 
purpose,  after  being  ready  to  start  for  home ;  others  seconded 
her  proposition  so  eagerly  that  I  could  only  get  off  by  protest- 
ing that  the  Presbyterian  Church  did  not  permit  dancing. 

In  the  morning,  when  a  crevice  of  my  window-shutter  let  in 
unquestionable  evidence  of  day,  I  arose  to  see  the  last  of  the 
ball.  In  the  front  piazza,  where  the  goats  usually  sleep,  was 
i\  woman  established  with  aguardiente  and  cakes  for  sale.  She 
had  brought  a  demijohn  half  full,  of  which  remained  a  bottle- 
1'ul.  She  had  sold  to  the  amount  of  $11  20,  and  would  have 
sold  more  had  I  been  willing  the  night  before  to  lend  money  to 
those  who  had  none  of  their  own  to  spend. 

I  entered  the  sala,  and  there  I  saw  a  sight  that  Christy  would 
give  $500  or  $1000  to  see.  The  dance  was  the  bundi,  a  Cho- 
co  dance.  Two  couples,  very  black,  and  past  the  summer  of 
life,  had  the  floor.  The  four  were  slowly  revolving  about  the 
room  in  a  large  circle,  while  each  couple  alternately  rushed  to- 
ward the  centre,  and  receded  as  the  other  advanced.  This  is 
the  theory,  but  the  manner  defies  me.  The  man  commences 
his  centripetal  movement  as  if  he  had  "  broken  loose,"  and  you 
feel  a  fear  that  his  partner  will  be  demolished  in  a  collision. 
And  then  the  ad  libitum  steps  of  his  retreat !  But  the  music ! 
One  was  drumming  with  his  fingers,  the  other  thumping  a  bench 
with  a  broomstick  with  all  his  might,  and  both,  with  others, 
were  singing  "  Ai  ke  le  le"  obstreperously.  So  furious  was  the 
fun,  that  I  thought  every  minute  some  one  would  have  to  give 
in  or  drop  dead.  Set  after  set  danced  the  bundi,  and  the  last  to 
leave  the  floor  was  our  cook,  an  aged  negress,  who,  having  been 
busy  in  the  kitchen  all  day,  wore  a  camisa  that  had  seen  eight 
days'  service  in  a  kitchen  without  a  chimney,  and,  further,  had 
two  holes  worn  in  it  just  where  it  should  be  whole. 

Such  orgies  in  the  States  would  have  presented  a  different  re-. 


480  NEW  GRANADA. 

suit.  The  supply  of  rum  would  have  been  exhausted  if  any  less 
than  a  barrel,  for  probably  there  was  not  an  individual  over  six 
years  old  that  did  not  drink.  How  many  tights  would  there 
have  been  ?  How  many  in  the  morning  would  have  been  una- 
ble to  walk  ?  But  here  I  saw  only  two  (one  a  boy)  who  gave 
indications  of  having  been  drinking.  I  see  that  I  am  among  a 
people  of  a  different  race,  just  as  our  Indians  are  a  different  race 
from  ourselves  in  respect  to  alcohol. 

I  must  not  forget  to  add  that  the  bride  kept  up  all  night,  and 
in  the  morning  I  saw  her  sitting  watching  the  dancers  with  the 
gold  chains  still  about  her  neck.  One  of  her  children  had  his 
head  in  her  lap,  the  other  was  sitting  by  her  side  smoking  a  ci- 
gar. Saturday  night  she  was  up  all  night  at  a  ball.  To-night 
is  another  ball,  and  probably  to-morrow  night  another.  This 
is  not  all.  She  has  her  fasts  to  go  through,  and  to  commune, 
before  the  marriage  will  be  so  complete  as  to  permit  them  to 
sleep  together.  I  wonder  how  she  lives  through  it  all ! 

I  urged  the  priest  to  have  his  mass  in  the  morning,  immedi- 
ately on  the  cessation  of  the  dancing,  before  the  dancers  went 
home ;  but  he  told  me  that,  the  day  not  being  a  fiesta,  the  peo- 
ple were  not  under  obligation  to  hear  mass,  and  it  would  be  bet- 
ter to  have  it  at  the  usual  hour ;  so  most  of  them  dispersed  be- 
fore mass. 

A  little  before  mass  I  saw  the  young  gentlemen  of  the  family 
on  horseback.  Each  had  before  him,  on  liis  high-pommeled  sad- 
dle, a  nymph  of  the  dance,  who  had  come  on  foot  the  night  be- 
fore. His  arm  was  round  her  waist,  and,  that  both  parties  might 
be  equally  sure  of  her  safety,  her  arm  was  also  around  his  neck. 
She  sat  sidewise.  It  happened,  by  accident  no  doubt,  that  this 
good  fortune  fell  to  just  the  youngest  and  handsomest  of  the  be- 
witching brunettes  of  the  whole  company. 

In  the  mass  he  had  the  communion  to  administer  to  a  man. 
In  the  act  of  administering  it,  he  discovered  a  negress,  or,  rath- 
er, a  negrita,  who,  instead  of  being  on  her  knees  as  a  Christian 
should  be  in  the  presence  of  the  body  of  Christ,  was  sitting  on 
the  ground.  He  paused  at  once,  and  called  out,  "  On  your 
knees !  on  your  knees !  One  would  take  you  for  a  Protestant ! '' 
and  on  he  went  with  his  prayer  or  formula,  leaving  me,  hopeless 
Protestant,  on  my  feet  close  to  him. 


MY  HORSE  ALIAGA.  4gj 

A  few  days  afterward,  the  pretty  Mercedes,  who  danced  with 
the  tall,  grim  old  negro  Miguel,  received  some  letters  from  Quil- 
ichao,  where  she  had  been  at  boarding-school.  She  offered  them 
to  me  to  read.  The  first  was  from  a  schoolmate,  and  began, 
"Mi  querida  negra" — "  My  dear  negress."  I  was  astonished. 
She  was  "a  white  man's  daughter,"  then;  but  whose?  and 
what  negress  was  her  mother  ?  She  can  not  be  darker  than  a 
quadroon.  As  I  write,  I  am  infested  with  the  idea  that  she  is 
a  very  near  relative  to  Don  Eladio.  The  other  letter  was  from 
her  teacher,  and  contained  this  expression :  **  I  hope,  my  dear 
negress,  that  you  are  enjoying  your  visit  at  La  Ribera."  Such 
terms  of  endearment  are  not  new  to  me,  but  I  select  this  case  as 
unusually  authentic. 

I  have  witnessed  some  queer  bathing-scenes  in  the  Tulua. 
True,  they  are  not  so  outrageous  as  at  Honda ;  but  here  I  am 
able  to  guarantee  the  entire  respectability  of  the  parties.  One 
company  was  Don  Eladio,  his  wife,  her  sister,  and  two  of  his 
brothers.  Here  I  first  saw  ladies  that  I  esteem  swim  with  gen- 
tlemen dressed  only  in  a  silk  pocket-handkerchief.  They  seem- 
ed to  enjoy  these  promiscuous  swims  very  much,  but  still  I  fan- 
cied I  could  see  it  checkered  with  a  half-acknowledged  conces- 
sion of  some  impropriety  in  them. 

I  became  the  owner  of  a  horse  while  in  this  family,  and  it 
happened  to  be  the  first  animal  I  ever  owned.  The  purchase 
was  not  a  matter  of  my  choice,  and  the  possession  of  him  was 
no  advantage  to  me,  but  a  continual  vexation,  which  the  few 
dollars  advance  at  which  I  sold  him  did  not  compensate  at  all. 
I  gained,  however,  a  valuable  experience  in  the  care  of  him.  He 
was  broken  in  before  coming  into  my  hands,  but  quite  young. 
I  named  him  Aliaga.  I  took  possession  of  him  on  my  birth- 
day, which  he  duly  celebrated  by  knocking  me  down  with  his 
"hands"  for  my  impertinence  in  interfering  with  two  flourish- 
ing colonies  of  ticks — garrapatas — in  his  ears.  He  sprained 
both  my  wrists ;  not  so  much,  however,  but  that  at  that  time  I 
was  able  to  convince  him  of  the  impropriety  of  his  proceedings, 
to  finish  greasing  his  ears,  and  ride  him  into  the  river  to  wash 
him.  From  that  day  I  was  almost  helpless,  and  it  was  a  month 
before  my  wrists  became  entirely  well. 

Aliaga  was  a  terrible  fellow  to  lazo.  He  was  too  fleet  for 

HH 


482  NEW   GRANADA. 

that.  He  hated  a  blow  from  a  heavy  guasca  as  he  would  from 
a  whip,  and  not  without  reason,  I  fancy.  I  never  knew  him  to 
be  thus  caught  in  the  open  plain  but  once,  and  then  after  a  chase 
nearly  as  fatiguing  as  a  day's  journey.  I  own  that  I  was  some- 
what surprised — others  were  amazed — when  I  found  I  could  go 
up  to  him  in  a  herd  to  which  he  had  escaped  by  breaking  his 
bounds,  and  put  a  halter  on  him.  None  of  them  had  ever  wit- 
nessed such  a  feat.  We  had  some  good  times  together.  On 
the  whole,  it  would  have  been  better  for  me  to  have  secured  a 
good  attendant  on  my  arrival  at  Bogota,  and  a  horse  of  my  own 
as  soon  as  I  arrived  in  this  valley,  where  they  are  cheap.  This 
plan  would  have  saved  more  than  it  would  cost. 

Toledo,  the  horse-breaker,  must  have  led  an  eventful  life. 
He  is  a  Socorrano — one  of  the  Yankees  of  South  America.  A 
quarrel,  he  says,  with  a  man  superior  to  him  in  influence  caused 
him  unjustly  to  be  thrown  into  the  Presidio.  I  am  myself 
inclined  to  think  that  many  worse  men  never  get  in.  He 
came  here,  then,  low  in  character,  and  deformed  with  a  large 
goitre,  which  is  here  considered  to  be  as  great  a  disgrace  as  any 
other  kind  of  personal  ugliness,  though  I  am  told  that  in  some 
secluded  spots  in  the  country,  north  of  Bogota,  it  is  thought 
rather  respectable  to  have  a  good  coto,  or  goitre.  Toledo's  has 
entirely  disappeared  by  the  use  of  the  iodiferous  salt  of  Burila. 

Toledo  goes  among  the  families  about  here  some.  He  pro- 
posed to  take  me  with  him  to  a  place  to  test  the  merits  of  a  sort 
of  combination  of  plantain  and  meat,  yet  unknown  to  me.  The 
time  set  run  by  without  his  saying  any  thing  farther  on  the 
subject.  I  reminded  him  of  it,  and  he  set  another  time,  and  yet 
a  third,  with  the  same  result.  We  never  went.  I  ventured  to 
advise  him  one  day  to  marry,  and  named  to  him  a  rather  pretty 
Caucana  that  I  thought  would  be  equally  benefited  by  the  al- 
liance. With  some  hesitation,  he  acknowledged  that  he  was 
just  then  thinking  of  marrying  another.  He  did  not  think  his 
choice  superior ;  but,  in  fact,  there  were  other  circumstances  to 
be  taken  into  account.  To  be  plain,  her  father  was  very  angry 
•with  him,  and  threatened  to  kill  him  if  he  did  not  marry  her. 
Indeed,  the  old  man  was  raving,  so  that  the  daughter  could  not 
live  at  home.  On  learning  the  facts,  I  told  him  that  I  thought 
her  father  had  reason  to  be  angry,  and  I  was  glad  to  see  him 


LYING  AND  LAY  BAPTISM.  483 

care  so  much  about  the  poor  girl's  reputation.  I  advised  him 
to  marry  her,  but,  when  I  came  to  see  her,  my  heart  almost 
failed  me.  She  was  as  ugly  as  a  monkey. 

One  day  Escolastica  came  to  me  to  learn  what  day  it  was.  I 
told  her  it  was  Tuesday.  That  was  not  what  she  wanted,  but 
to  know  what  the  saint  of  the  day  was.  I  told  her  that  we  had 
no  saints  but  God  in  the  States,  and  wanted  to  know  why  she 
needed  to  know.  She  said  that  a  child  had  been  born  near  by, 
and  was  not  likely  to  live,  so  Antonio  was  going  to  baptize  it 
when  they  ascertained  the  saint  for  whom  it  was  to  be  named. 
I  wished  to  see  it  done,  but  they  had  "  concluded  not  to  have 
it  done  then"  It  was  done  later,  without  my  knowledge. 

I  saw  Antonio  one  day  cruelly  beating  a  poor  fighting-cock 
that  he  had  kept  tied  by  one  leg  for  some  weeks.  He  had  giv- 
en the  fattened  bird  an  opportunity  of  fighting,  and  it  refused. 
He  boxed  its  head  till  it  hung  down,  and  all  around  said  it  was 
dead.  He  carried  it  off,  and  when  he  returned  he  said  it  had 
recovered.  I  was  told  that  this  was  not  true,  and  it  was  con- 
firmed at  our  dinner  by  the  remains  of  the  cock. 

I  remarked  to  Antonio  one  day  a  difference  between  English 
and  French  fictions.  In  the  latter,  all  the  best  characters  lie 
sometimes,  while  those  in  ours  never  do. 

"Therein,"  said  he,  "their  fictions  are  more  true  to  nature, 
for  we  all  meet  with  occasions  in  which  we  have  to  lie." 

Don  Eladio  himself  once  was  speaking  to  me  of  the  oppres- 
sion that  he,  a  Conservador,  suffered  from  the  Liberal  officers 
of  the  district.  He  stated  the  amount  of  his  taxes,  and  I  was 
convinced  that  it  was  unjust.  I  mentioned  this  to  an  eminent 
Liberal,  who  told  me  I  did  wrong  in  believing  men's  assertions 
so  implicitly.  He  urged  me  to  see  the  tax-list  with  my  own 
eyes.  I  ascertained  afterward  that  Seiior  Vargas  had  overstat- 
ed the  sum  by  some  60  per  cent. 

While  in  this  family,  and  when  the  ladies  were  all  at  Cartago, 
I  had  an  attack  of  fever,  which  served  to  remind  me  of  the  bless- 
ing that  my  otherwise  uniform  good  health  has  been  to  me. 

I  was  sleeping  in  the  corredor  on  Tuesday  night  as  usual, 
sufficiently  protected  from  the  weather  and  the  musquitoes  by 
my  musquito-bar,  when  I  was  taken  with  a  fever.  In  the  morn- 
ing I  did  not  leave  my  hammock  till  I  decided  to  take  an  emet- 


484  NEW  GRANADA. 

ic.  Now  if  a  hammock  is  convenient  in  such  a  case  I  have  yet 
something  to  learn.  After  long  delay,  a  traveling  cot  was  put 
together  in  the  room  No.  9,  and  I  sat  up,  using  a  bedstead  as  a 
table.  I  opened  a  box  of  medicines,  a  box  of  those  rascally 
apothecaries'  weights,  and  Cox's  "  Companion  to  the  Medicine- 
chest."  While  yet  I  had  sense  enough  to  do  it,  I  had  decided 
on  a  mixture  of  tartar  emetic  and  ipecacuanha.  Now  I  gazed 
at  the  book,  then  at  the  weights,  then  at  the  table  of  weights. 
I  selected  weights,  balanced  them  with  medicine,  forced  myself 
to  review  and  re-review  weights,  weight-table,  prescription,  and 
labels,  so  that  it  took  me  more  than  half  an  hour  to  be  sure  that 
I  should  not  commit  a  fatal  error.  Pilar  brought  me  a  bowl  of 
warm  water,  set  a  tray  by  my  bedside,  and  left  me  to  my  fate. 

At  night  my  hammock  was  again  hung  for  me,  and  I  spent 
the  night  in  the  corredor.  On  Thursday  morning  Pepe  contrived 
to  hang  my  hammock  in  the  room  No.  9.  At  first  this  was 
thought  impossible,  on  account  of  the  re-entering  angle.  Here 
I  lay,  mostly  dozing  and  insensible.  Once  I  came  to  myself 
enough  to  see  that  it  was  dark.  I  recollect  once  I  was  in  the 
sala,  driven  probably  by  thirst.  I  slept  or  was  delirious  till  3 
in  the  morning,  when  I  came  to  consciousness.  There  was  a 
ball  in  the  sala. 

For  three  long  hours  I  lay  there,  hoping  that  some  one  might 
look  in  upon  me,  but  in  vain.  At  6  my  thirst  became  intolera- 
ble, and  I  went  again  to  the  sala.  The  ball  was  at  its  height. 
The  waltzing  knew  no  intermission.  The  floor  was  all  the  time 
full,  and,  whenever  a  couple  got  tired,  another  was  ready  to  take 
their  place.  The  musicians  were  relieved  in  the  same  way. 
Here  I  waited  till  I  was  dizzy.  It  was  a  long  time  before  I 
could  obtain  any  thing.  I  hoped  to  get  some  warm  drink,  but 
was  told  that  it  would  be  impossible  when  all  the  servants  were 
busy  dancing.  I  had  to  content  myself  with  a  drink  of  cold 
water.  "^ 

Dr.  Quintero  was  sent  for.  He  came  on  Friday  afternoon, 
but  I  was  already  some  better.  I  had  contrived  to  rouse  my- 
self long  enough  to  prescribe,  weigh  out,  and  take  a  dose  of  cal- 
omel and  rhubarb,  but  with  little  or  no  advantage.  As  I  now 
surrendered  my  case  into  the  doctor's  hands,  he  desired  to  know 
the  doses  I  had  taken,  but  I  could  not  tell  him.  I  neither  knew 


MY  SICKNESS.  485 

the  size  of  his  granos  nor  he  the  size  of  our  grains.  I  told  him 
that  about  7500  of  our  grains  would  make  one  of  their  ordinary 
libras,  or  pounds,  but  this  did  not  enable  him  to  reduce  their 
weights  of  medicine  to  ours.  I  believe  that  100  of  their  grains 
are  about  equal  to  77  of  ours.  Dr.  Quintero  gave  me  at  first 
two  doses  of  sal  soda  and  lime-juice,  and,  for  the  next  day,  a 
mixture  (I  suppose)  of  decoction  of  cinchona  and  Epsom  salts. 
He  steadily  refused  any  compensation  for  his  long  ride  and  his 
services. 

On  Monday  I  was  better,  though  since  3  o'clock  Friday  morn- 
ing I  had  not  slept  at  all.  My  chief  occupation  on  Sunday  had 
been  to  try  to  go  to  sleep,  and  I  kept  quietly  at  it  all  the  night, 
and,  though  unsuccessful,  was  quite  comfortable.  Now  I  began 
to  think  of  eating  again ;  but  what  should  I  eat  ?  Neither  but- 
ter, flour,  meal,  potatoes,  rice,  nor  any  substitute  for  any  of  these 
was  to  be  had.  For  meat,  I  sent  a  man  out  to  shoot  me  a  mon- 
key. He  shot  one,  but  he  clung  to  the  tree,  and  would  not  fall. 
The  next  day  I  succeeded  in  buying  a  fowl,  by  paying  what  I 
should  consider  a  fair  price  for  an  acre  of  land — 40  cents.  At 
one  cabin  they  found  a  spoonful  of  rice,  and  at  another  about  as 
much  meal,  so  that  I  made  a  dinner.  When  my  fowl  was  fin- 
ished, I  declared  myself  well,  and  took  hold  of  tasajo  again. 

In  cookery,  there  is  no  effort  made  to  develop  the  resources 
of  the  land.  Tomatoes  grow  here  without  culture  after  once 
seeding  the  ground,  but  they  never  are  cooked.  Indeed,  I  sus- 
pect that,  as  they  run  wild,  they  become  poisonous.  I  ate  some 
from  a  yard,  where  the  house  had  been  burned  and  the  grounds 
abandoned,  and  was  attacked  with  a  severe  burning  in  my  throat 
in  consequence. 

I  suffered  much  here  from  the  want  of  ripe  plantains  and  from 
the  character  of  the  beef.  I  think  my  weight  varied  progress- 
ively with  the  age  of  the  beef.  It  was  too  bad,  but  I  always  re- 
joiced when  I  saw  two  horsemen  come  up  to  the  house  with  their 
lazos  upon  a  cow  between  them.  The  fatal  fork — horca — was 
out  before  my  window.  One  would  throw  his  guasca  over  it, 
and  at  every  movement  of  the  poor  cow,  which  was  generally 
very  angry,  he  would  lessen  the  distance  between  her  and  the 
horca ;  the  distance,  like  that  between  us  and  the  grave,  is  nev- 
er to  be  increased.  When  the  victim's  head  is  at  length  within 


486  NEW  GRANADA. 

twenty  inches  of  the  fatal  post,  the  other  horseman  dismounts 
and  throws  her.  The  lazos  are  released  from  her  horns,  and  a 
stout  hide  rope — rejo — binds  her  head  thoroughly  to  the  post, 
and  she  is  suffered  to  rise. 

This  is  in  the  afternoon.  She  stands  there  all  night,  and  all 
the  dogs  in  the  place  know  that  she  dies  ere  sunrise.  They  as- 
semble, and  Felix  comes,  and  one  or  two  assistants.  The  jug- 
ular vein  is  opened  while  she  is  yet  standing  by  a  sudden  dex- 
trous thrust.  The  dogs  crowd  under,  and  lap  the  warm  blood 
as  it  flows  and  smears  them  over.  The  poor  brute  falls,  is  un- 
bound, and  dragged  away  from  the  stake.  Twenty  dogs  sit  on 
their  haunches,  in  a  circle  of  fifteen  feet  radius,  with  their  faces 
all  toward  the  centre  where  the  butchers  work.  The  skin  is  at 
length  spread  on  the  ground,  with  the  rest  of  the  animal  on  it. 
With  busy  knives  they  now  cut  off  some  masses  for  the  con- 
sumption of  to-day  and  to-morrow,  and  cut  the  rest  up  into 
strings.  The  mass  rapidly  diminishes,  till  on  the  skin  there 
remains  nothing  but  viscera  and  bones.  These,  too,  are  then 
borne  off  to  the  kitchens  of  the  family  and  the  peasantry,  and  the 
skin  is  pegged  down  to  the  ground  and  left.  The  gallinazos 
that  have  been  perching  round  now  fly  down  upon  it,  walk  all 
over  it,  and,  if  any  particles  of  meat  have  been  left  adhering 
which  their  bills  can  remove,  they  eat  them. 

The  strings  of  beef  are  carried  into  the  corredor  XIX.,  and 
laid  on  a  piece  of  dry  hide  kept  for  that  purpose.  A  detach- 
ment of  dogs  follow  the  first  load  that  is  brought  in,  through 
the  sala,  of  course.  They  watch  and  steal  if  they  can,  while  it 
is  rolled  in  salt,  and  hung  on  poles  that  are  kept  always  ready, 
between  corredores  XIX..  and  XX.  The  gallinazos  seldom  ven- 
ture here  to  steal  it.  The  disgust  with  which  unpracticed  eyes 
regard  these  festoons  of  tasajo  finally  wears  away. 

For  a  day  or  two  after  the  "  day  of  slaughter1'  (spoken  of  in 
the  Bible  as  a  day  of  feasting,  James,  v.,  5)  I  ate  scarce  any 
thing  but  meat.  Then,  as  the  fare  deteriorated,  I  lapsed  almost 
into  sheer  vegetarianism.  Once  or  twice  I  resorted  to  the  oily 
eggs  of  turtles,  which  needed  no  butter  to  make  them  into  an 
omelet.  These  the  cook  seasoned  by  guess,  for  not  a  servant 
would  taste  them.  The  prejudice  against  turtle-eggs  is  un- 
known on  the  Magdalena,  where  the  bogas  feast  on  them  in  their 


AGRICULTURE.  487 

season,  and  passengers  do  not  disdain  them  when  they  can  get 
them.  The  Caucan  turtle  does  not  differ  perceptibly  from  the 
snapping-turtle  of  New  England — Testudo  serpentaria.  The 
eggs  are  spheres  of  an  inch  in  diameter,  without  a  shell.  I  saw 
a  single  terrapin,  apparently  an  Emys,  at  La  Paila  ;  but  it  was 
a  novelty  to  all  who  saw  it,  so  rare  are  they. 

When  able  to  be  out  again  I  went  to  see  them  clear  up  land 
to  plant.  The  chief  implements  are  the  machete  and  a  tool 
shaped  like  a  spade,  with  a  straight  stick  for  a  handle.  It  is 
lighter  than  a  spade,  and  with  a  smaller  blade  than  a  shovel. 
They  call  it  a  pala ;  I  would  translate  it  push-hoe.  Axes  are 
not  much  used  here.  They  are  long  and  narrow,  and  without 
what  we  call  the  head  or  poll.  Of  course  they  are  very  ineffi- 
cient, but  it  would  be  quite  difficult  to  introduce  our  more  cost- 
ly and  heavier  axe. 

They  aim  at  planting  just  at  the  commencement  of  a  rainy 
spell.  In  fact,  they  plant  maize  about  twice  a  year.  It  takes 
about  four  months  to  ripen.  I  saw  likewise  here  a  plantain- 
field  lately  set  out,  the  only  new  one  I  have  seen.  Sprouts 
broken  from  the  base  of  an  old  stem  are  here  set  at  proper  dis- 
tances, say  a  rod  or  more,  apart.  Cane  is  set  in  the  same  way, 
but  much  closer  together.  A  little  attention  should  be  given 
to  the  corn  and  plantains  at  first,  that  it  run  not  up  to  bushes 
again,  but  plowing  is  unknown.  There  is  a  yoke  of  cattle  be- 
longing to  the  family.  They  haul  guadua  and  timber,  if  any 
be  wanted.  There  is  a  cart  and  a  water-cart,  but  I  know  not 
that  either  has  ever  been  used. 

I  can  give  no  market-price  for  maize,  rice,  or  any  like  sub- 
stance. They  are  sold  by  the  palito  or  box-full.  The  size  of 
the  palito  differs  one  half.  I  should  guess  maize  to  be  about 
from  10  to  60  cents  per  bushel.  I  put  dried  cow  beef  at  a  dime 
per  pound — called  equal  to  3  pounds  fresh,  but  really  a  little 
less,  unless  very  thoroughly  dried.  Fresh  meat  is  sold  at  90 
cents  per  arroba,  legally  equal  to  27.5592125  pounds  avoirdu- 
pois, or  $3  27  per  cwt.,  free  of  bone.  Hogs,  unfattened,  maybe 
put  at  $3  20  each ;  young  bulls  at  $8 ;  unbroken  colts,  $13 ; 
broken,  $20. 

But  the  most  villainous  animals  ever  called  domestic  are 
goats.  The  goat  is  able  to  take  care  of  himself.  He  goes  up 


488  NEW  GRANADA. 

to  the  naked  tops  of  the  knolls  every  morning,  comes  down  at 
night,  bleats  around  the  house,  and  makes  himself  hateful  in  ev- 
ery possible  way.  Goats  climb  into  the  oven,  and  jump  up  on 
the  grinding-stone  and  lick  off  the  chocolate.  At  night,  no 
sooner  are  the  doors  all  shut  than  they  invade  the  corredor, 
jump  up  to  roost  on  the  pretil  or  on  the  table,  and,  when  I  hung 
my  hammock  there,  would  entangle  themselves  in  my  musqui- 
to-net,  and  were  an  unutterable  abomination  to  me.  I  often 
thought  that  the  distinction  between  sheep  and  goats  in  the  Bi- 
ble was  well  put.  Sheep  are  rarer  because  they  need  care,  but 
they  seem  to  be  healthy  here. 

They  say  that  the  tobacco  of  this  region  is  as  good  as  that  of 
Havana.  I  do  not  rely  upon  that  opinion.  I  do  not  believe 
that  better  coffee  can  be  raised  than  in  some  parts  of  this  valley. 
The  cacao-tree  is  said  to  be  indigenous  to  the  Cauca.  Indigo 
might  be  raised  here  in  any  quantity,  and  cochineal.  Both  these 
articles  will  pay  transportation,  but  they  require  too  much  labor 
and  care  to  suit  the  disposition  of  the  Caucanos. 

What  more  could  Nature  do  for  this  people,  or  what  has  she 
withholden  from  them  ?  What  production  of  any  zone  would  be 
unattainable  to  patient  industry,  if  they  knew  of  such  a  virtue  ? 
But  their  valley  seems  to  be  enriched  with  the  greatest  fertility 
and  the  finest  climate  in  the  world  only  to  show  the  miraculous 
power  of  idleness  and  unthrift  to  keep  a  land  poor.  Here  the 
family  have  sometimes  omitted  their  dinner  just  because  there 
was  nothing  to  eat  in  the  house.  Maize,  cacao,  and  rice,  when 
out  of  season,  can  hardly  be  had  for  love  or  money ;  so  this  val- 
ley, a  very  Eden  by  nature,  is  filled  with  hunger  and  poverty 
from  Popayan  to  Antioquia. 


SETTING  OUT  FOB  THE  WOODS.  489 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 

THE  PASTUEES  IN  THE   FOREST. 

Sadden  Start.— Wardrobe  for  the  Woods. — Plan  and  Company. — Barleycorn 
Boldness. — Night  in  Woods  and  Rain. — Departed  Spirits. — El  Chorro. — 
Thermometer  broken. — A  Country  all  aslant. — Las  Playas. — Rancho  of  Cen- 
tury-plant.— Substitute  for  Cords. — Jicaramata. — Guavito. — Threat  of  Famine. 
— Sabbath-day's  Journey. — Routed  by  Hunger. — Snakes. — Treasure-hunting. 

I  HAD  been  to  Chaqueral  to  see  Isabel  Gomez  as  much  as  any 
thing.  I  was  returning  to  La  Paila,  where  I  was  then  stop- 
ping, when  at  the  river  of  Las  Canas  I  met  my  host,  Senor 
Modesto  Flojo,  accompanied  by  Dr.  Quintero.  I  was  surprised 
to  learn  that  they  were  in  pursuit  of  me.  A  project  had  been 
hatched  up  to  hunt  for  cinchona  in  the  forests,  high  up  the  Riv- 
er Tulua.  It  was  now  Friday  afternoon,  and  it  was  proposed 
to  reach  Portazuela  that  night,  and  La  Ribera  next  day,  in  time 
to  make  all  necessary  arrangements  so  as  to  take  to  the  woods 
early  on  Sunday  morning.  To  this  I  would  not  assent,  but 
agreed  to  the  plan,  with  two  modifications.  We  were  to  leave 
La  Ribera  on  Monday,  and  not  to  travel  the  succeeding  Sab- 
bath ;  and  paper  must  be  taken  for  me  to  collect  plants  in. 

All  this  was  assented  to.  I  had  an  hour  at  La  Paila  to  ar- 
range matters  for  a  week's  sojourn  in  the  forest.  I  took  a  fa- 
tigue-dress, hunting-shirt,  hammock,  flannel  night-dress,  encau- 
chado,  bayeton,  a  little  Greek  Testament,  a  needle-book,  pocket- 
compass,  thermometer,  machete,  pocket-knife,  comb,  and  a  ream 
or  two  of  printing-paper.  All  this,  except  the  paper,  I  accommo- 
dated about  my  saddle.  The  object  of  the  expedition  was  a 
secret.  Some  of  the  party  had  mules  at  pasture  that  they  wished 
to  see  ;  the  others  went  with  them  to  have  a  hunt. 

After  leaving  La  Paila,  we  stopped  in  Guavito  at  the  house 
of  Bernabe,  the  negro  judge,  who  was  skinning  a  goat ;  then, 
again,  at  Murillo,  and  at  7  P.M.  were  seated  at  a  comfortable 
dinner  at  Dr.  Quintero's  table  at  Portazuela.  There  was  other 
company  there,  and  the  house  was  full.  My  hammock  was  in- 


490  NEW   GRANADA. 

geniously  hung  by  passing  the  ropes  over  the  tops  of  two  oppo- 
site doors  from  the  sala  into  inner  rooms,  and  tying  to  them  two 
cobs  of  maize,  so  that  they  could  not  draw  through.  My  weight 
rendered  the  opening  of  the  doors  impossible  till  I  rose. 

In  the  morning,  the  thongs  of  raw  hide  to  tie  my  hammock 
over  the  pockets  of  my  cojinetes  had  disappeared.  Dr.  Quin- 
tero  charged  the  theft  upon  the  dogs  of  a  guest.  "  My  dogs 
do  not  eat  rejo,"  said  their  owner.  Dr.  Quintero,  who  hap- 
pened to  be  cutting  raw  hide  at  the  instant,  threw  a  strip  to 
one  of  the  accused,  which  pleaded  guilty  by  swallowing  it  in- 
stantly ;  not  a  word  was  said. 

After  breakfast  we  all  went  to  La  Ribera.  Here  they  told 
me  that  they  had  again  concluded  to  start  on  Sunday  morning. 
"Very  well,"  I  said;  "leave  me  a  guide,  and  I  will  come  on 
after  you  on  Monday."  Finding  me  firm,  they  concluded  to 
have  a  hunt  on  Sunday,  and  start  as  agreed ;  so  I  rested,  ac- 
cording to  the  commandment,  and  the  party,  some  of  whom  had 
slept  in  Tulua,  met  and  killed  a  deer.  Damian,  the  young  law- 
yer, whose  energy  makes  amends  for  Don  Modesto's  slackness, 
had  joined  them,  and  had  pledged  himself  to  eat  the  hides  and 
hoofs  of  all  the  deer  they  killed  that  day.  They  were  so  pleased 
with  their  success  that  they  excused  him  from  the  task.  The 
mode  of  hunting  is  to  post  themselves  in  ambush  near  where 
deer  are  likely  to  pass  when  pursued,  and  wait  while  the  thick- 
et is  beaten  with  dogs  and  peons. 

At  night  our  company  was  complete,  and  at  daylight  in  the 
morning  we  were  on  our  way.  There  were  in  all  11  of  us,  viz., 
Don  Modesto  Flojo,  commander-in-chief ;  Damian  Caicedo,  his 
wife's  nephew ;  Miguel  and  Manuel  Vicente,  two  brothers-in- 
law  ;  Pepe  and  Chepe  Sanmartin,  his  sons-in-law — two  smart 
lads,  though  but  15  and  13 ;  Dr.  Quintero ;  a  Sefior  Tascon ; 
Miguel  (a  guide)  ;  and  Lorenzo,  Don  Modesto's  concertado,  and 
my  famous  guide  on  another  occasion. 

We  had  barely  started,  when  Don  Modesto  and  Tascon  turn- 
ed back,  and  we  advanced  more  slowly  to  give  them  a  chance 
of  rejoining.  We  wound  our  way  along  the  side  of  an  enor- 
mous hill,  called  the  Picazo,  at  a  very  high  elevation,  but  far  be- 
low the  summit.  A  few  miles  farther  brought  us  to  the^nd  of 
the  grass — llano — at  Las  Minas.  Here  we  stopped  and  made 


COURAGE  UP.  491 

a  delicious  breakfast  on  yesterday's  venison.  We  had  not  dis- 
mounted ere  Don  Modesto  and  Tascon  came  in,  bringing  with 
them  the  object  of  their  solicitude,  La  Pechona.  She,  as  well 
as  they,  was  in  spirits,  or,  rather,  a  pint  and  a  half  of  spirits 
were  in  her.  Hidden  in  the  cojinetes  of  Tascon  and  Manuel  Vi- 
cente were  two  of  her  frail  sisters,  whose  company  greatly  ani- 
mated the  day's  ride. 

From  Las  Minas  our  route  for  several  miles  was  upward,  till 
we  came  to  oak  trees.  We  had  a  road  from  which  I  did  not 
see  any  other  diverge  that  did  not  enter  it  again.  With  every 
obstacle  the  spirits  of  Senor  Flojo  seemed  to  rise.  Now  and 
then  his  shout  would  ring  through  the  woods,  "Don't  you  flinch, 
my  dears,  for  here  go  I !"  I  had  been  unwilling  to  expose  my 
Aliaga  to  the  hardships  of  the  journey,  and  had  left  him  in 
charge  of  Dr.  Quintero's  sisters,  and  was  mounted  on  a  fine 
young  mare  of  Don  Modesto's.  He  seemed  very  unwilling  that 
I  should  favor  her,  but  I  persisted  in  dismounting  whenever  a 
thick  tree  or  such  obstacle  lay  in  the  road  up  hill.  Once  or 
twice,  at  an  ugly  spot,  he  would  call  out,  "  Whoever  dismounts 
here  shall  not  pass  again  for  a  man  till  he  has  been  searched." 
I  dismounted  all  the  same. 

High  up  among  the  oaks  we  stopped  at  a  contadero  to  rest. 
The  day  was  delightful.  Up  we  went  again,  and  soon  came  to 
trouble.  Even  this  road  had  its  callejones.  The  sumpter  mule 
was  walking  above  a  deep  one  that  was  too  narrow  for  her  load 
to  pass  in  it,  and  she  fell  in.  They  loosened  her  load,  and 
dragged  her  off  it  by  the  tail  down  to  a  spot  where  they  could 
set  her  on  her  feet.  Then  they  got  her  and  the  load  out  of  the 
callejon,  changed  her  for  Manuel  Vicente's  mule,  and  we  went  on. 

We  straggled  very  much.  We  halted  at  another  contadero, 
where  we  attained  the  greatest  altitude  for  the  day,  and  I  went 
back  on  foot  to  see  if  the  boys  and  Tascon  were  not  lost.  Then 
came  an  unintermitted  descent  for  an  hour  or  more.  A  roaring 
stream  was  heard  at  the  bottom.  It  was  Rio  San  Marcos,  a 
branch  of  the  Tulua,  which  we  crossed,  and  at  4  we  came  to  the 
Tulua  at  Platanal.  Here  is  the  first  we  have  seen  of  the  Tulua, 
which,  even  up  here,  would  be  a  pretty  good  stream  to  ford.  Ap- 
parently it  rattles  over  a  stony  bed  almost  till  it  reaches  the  very 
Cauca,  without  becoming  quiet  as  do  the  streams  farther  north. 


492  NEW   GRANADA. 

A  council  was  held,  and  it  was  decided  to  go  no  farther.  We 
had  dinner  to  get,  and  dispositions  for  night  to  make.  Platanal 
is  an  open  spot  a  few  rods  square,  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Tu- 
lua.  I  had  some  plants  to  put  in  paper,  and  among  them  a  bush 
Passiflora.  I  lost  the  most  beautiful  Inga  to-day  I  ever  saw 
growing  wild.  Here  I  discovered  that  they  had  failed  to  bring, 
as  they  promised,  some  ground  maize.  For  vegetables  they  had 
green  plantains,  and  I  made  a  miserable  dinner.  Two  men  went 
back  and  built  a  fence  across  the  road  to  keep  the  mules  from 
returning.  This  is  generally  done  of  nights,  even  when  travel- 
ing in  the  highway,  where  there  are  no  pastures  or  pens. 

The  weather  was  threatening.  Some  united  together  and 
made  a  tent  of  their  bayetones,  sleeping  under  it  almost  without 
bed  or  clothing.  Stems  of  cana  brava,  a  grass  as  large  and 
straight  as  fishing-poles,  served  very  well  for  a  frame- work.  Don 
Modesto  and  others  slept  wrapped  in  their  bayetones  under  the 
open  sky.  All  wore  their  day-clothes.  I  hung  my  hammock 
between  two  trees,  and  passed  another  rope  between  them  over 
my  hammock,  and  on  this  hung  my  encauchado,  so  that  the 
edges  of  it  were  lower  than  my  hammock.  Beneath  me  I  put 
my  saddle,  paper,  and  day-clothes.  I  had  sewed  up  the  head- 
hole  in  my  bayeton,  and  used  it  for  a  blanket.  I  went  to  sleep 
looking  up  into  the  gloomy  sky,  but  was  soon  waked  up  by 
Dr.  Quintero,  who  told  me  I  must  not  expose  my  head  to  irra- 
diation ;  so  I  drew  it  in  under  my  roof. 

I  woke  at  sunrise,  and  it  was  raining.  As  yet  I  was  dry,  but 
how  should  I  dress  ?  A  knotty  question.  The  tent  offered  a 
solution.  I  reached  under  my  hammock,  and  got  my  hat  and 
my  clothes.  I  then  sprang  out,  and  ran  "between  the  drops" 
to  the  tent,  and  dressed  there.  Meanwhile  a  cup  of  chocolate 
was  brought  me — a  small  silver  cup,  that  would  hold  half  a  gill. 
I  had  stipulated  for  a  silver-rimmed  cocoanut-shell  for  my  al- 
lowance, but  this  morning  they  could  not  make  enough  in  the 
rain.  Tascon,  Manuel  Vicente,  and  Miguel  the  peon  came  in 
with  the  horses,  and  brought  with  them  a  venomous  snake  that 
they  had  killed. 

Died  in  the  night  La  Pechona  and  both  her  sisters ;  cause, 
rapid  consumption,  aggravated  by  the  rain  in  the  night.  They 
yielded  up  the  last  drop  of  their  spirit  about  daybreak.  Don 


COURAGE  GONE.  493 

Modesto  is  a  sincere  mourner,  and  Tascon  disconsolate.  While 
we  were  preparing  to  mount,  the  bereaved  attended  to  the  obse- 
quies of  all  that  remained  of  the  dear  departed.  They  wrote 
not  even  resurgam  on  their  monument,  lest  their  resurrection 
might  occur  before  our  return  here. 

The  bereavement  had  a  wonderful  effect  on  Don  Modesto. 
The  daring,  jubilant  leader  of  yesterday  was  no  more.  No  more 
we  heard  the  cry,  "Don't  flinch,  my  dears,  for  here  go  I;" 
now  it  would  mean,  "  Wherever  I  go  a  child  can  ride."  We 
soon  had  an  ugly  brook  to  cross.  Dr.  Quintero  had  to  go  back 
to  help  him  down  the  bank.  We  were  still  on  the  right  bank 
of  the  Tulua ;  some  time  after  passing  this  branch  of  it  we 
came  out  to  clear  land  again.  We  gathered  on  a  jutting  knoll, 
and  looked  down  on  our  camp  of  last  night.  The  rain  had 
ceased,  and  the  sun  was  coming  out.  The  Tulua  here  seemed 
to  bend  its  course  more  to  the  northward ;  it  came  down  from 
the  east  between  steep  grass-covered  hills.  Above  us  were  the 
heights  of  Tiemble-cul. 

I  would  not  think  of  riding  my  little  mare  up  there.  I  tried 
to  drive  her,  but,  as  I  was  in  advance  of  the  party,  she  would 
not  go.  I  led  her  a  while,  but  it  was  so  slippery  that  I  feared 
falling  under  her  feet.  I  finally  exchanged  her  for  a  gun,  and 
after  an  amazing  climb  I  was  at  the  top  of  Tiemble-cul.  You 
could  see  from  here  the  settlements  in  a  place  between  Tulua 
and  Buga.  It  seemed  an  hour  before  the  party  came  in  sight. 
I  managed  to  finish  drying  my  clothes  in  the  sun  first,  but  had 
hard  work  to  keep  warm  the  while. 

Level  and  descending  ground  now  brought  us  through  a 
small  piece  of  woods  to  El  Chorro.  Here  was  a  house,  kept  at 
present  by  a  boy  named  Ursulo.  Our  luxuries  here  were  a 
roof,  milk,  and  arracachas.  I  cooked  some  rice,  made  sirup  from 
panela,  and  ate.  I  dried  my  hammock,  and  dried  all  my  paper 
over  a  fire,  and  obtained  many  new  plants.  We  staid  all  day, 
and  they  tried  to  kill  a  deer.  Down  nearer  the  river  the  hill- 
sides were  covered  with  paths  of  the  tapir,  here  called  danta. 
We  had  no  hopes  of  shooting  one  of  them,  as  they  remain  hid 
all  day,  and  the  river  was  too  far  below  us  to  permit  our  thinking 
of  descending.  Chorro  means  a  rill  or  torrent.  A  cold  stream 
rolled  down  the  hill-side  a  few  rods  beyond  the  house,  which 


494  NEW  GRANADA. 

yielded  us  the  water  we  needed.  The  house  is  on  comparative- 
ly a  level  spot ;  that  is,  a  cask  might  stand  safely  near  it  with- 
out any  danger  of  its  rolling  down  to  the  Tulua.  Back  of  it 
the  ground  rose  up  to  an  unknown  height.  Part  of  the  slope 
was  covered  with  wax-palm  (Ceroxylon)  and  a  thicket  of  other 
plants. 

Before  dark  we  were  informed  that  somebody  was  coming. 
It  was  like  picking  up  a  boat  at  sea.  We  all  came  out  of  the 
house.  It  was  Don  Antonio  Besero,  with  two  peons.  He  owns 
mules  farther  up  at  Las  Playas,  and  had  come  to-day  from  Las 
Minas,  where  he  camped  last  night.  The  peons  built  a  fire  out 
doors.  Within,  we  had  a  candle-end  and  a  pack  of  cards. 

Before  breakfast,  on  Wednesday,  I  went  up  to  the  palms. 
On  my  return  I  found  my  thermometer  broken,  an  irreparable 
loss,  as  it  needed  comparing  with  a  standard  thermometer.  No 
one  knew  how  it  happened.  Don  Modesto  took  the  death  of 
La  Pechona  no  harder  than  I  the  loss  of  my  thermometer.  I 
ate  no  breakfast.  But  we  must  march.  We  went  up  the  riv- 
er, but  also  receded  from  it,  going  obliquely  up  an  immense  ad- 
ditional ascent.  We  met  some  bulls  that  we  wished  farther  off, 
or  on  ground  better  for  sport. 

At  length  our  path  lay  along  an  immense  inclined  plane  that 
seemed  terminated  by  the  sky  above  and  the  river  below.  So 
steep  was  the  hill,  and  so  narrow  the  path,  that  they  would  not 
suffer  me  to  ride  for  a  long  way  ;  so  we  all  walked,  leading  our 
horses.  In  this  position  we  halted  with  a  snake  in  front  of  us, 
which  was  shot  as  a  matter  of  precaution.  I  could  neither 
carry  him  on  nor  examine  him  for  fangs,  so  we  all  voted  him 
venomous,  and  left  him.  At  length  we  had  to  descend  two 
thirds  of  the  way  to  the  river.  I  think  it  took  us  an  hour  of 
steep  zigzag;  then  we  came  to  a  brook,  and  we  all  halted. 
Granadinos  rarely  drink  without  first  taking  dulce.  A  piece 
of  panela  was  produced,  and  cut  with  a  machete  into  inch  cubes, 
or  larger  pieces.  A  totuma  was  taken  from  a  peon's  hat,  rinsed, 
and  passed  round  with  water  from  the  chilly  rill. 

Again  we  were  on  the  still  worse  slope  of  almost  a  precipice, 
but  not  yet  dangerous,  so  I  kept  my  saddle.  In  one  place  I 
found  it  necessary  to  pause  to  adjust  my  hat  in  so  critical  a 
place  that  a  peon  told  me  afterward  that  he  "prayed  the  holy 


CAMP-BUILDING.  495 

Virgin  that  I  might  not  fall."  Here  we  saw  several  giant  vul- 
tures sailing  through  the  air.  I  ask  the  name,  and  they  tell 
me  it  is  the  buitre.  I  ask  if  it  is  not  the  condor,  and  they 
know  no  such  bird.  I  can  hardly  doubt  but  it  is  Vultur  Gry- 
phus,  the  largest  bird  that  flies.  His  wings  are  remarkable ; 
they  have  several  feathers  projecting  beyond  the  rest  like  ex- 
tended fingers.  The  scenery  that  passes  under  his  eye  is,  like 
himself,  gloomy,  solitary,  and  gigantic.  Cows,  horses,  and  mules 
have  nothing  to  fear  from  him  while  well  and  able  to  offer  re- 
sistance, but  calves  and  colts,  when  very  young,  are  blinded 
and  destroyed. 

We  continued  descending  till  the  rain  threatened  to  pour  in 
upon  us.  We  held  a  council  in  a  rocky  ravine,  and  voted  to 
camp,  but  Don  Antonio  finally  persuaded  us  to  advance  to  Las 
Playas,  where  we  crossed  the  Tulua,  here  about  two  feet  deep. 
Here  we  built,  on  Don  Antonio's  land,  a  rancho  of  the  leaves 
of  Fourcroya  (pita,  cabuya),  the  best  thing  we  could  find,  although 
the  leaves  are  very  heavy,  being  3  or  4  feet  long,  5  inches  wide, 
and  nearly  an  inch  thick.  Each  leaf  has  a  notch  cut  in  it,  to 
hang  it  across  a  horizontal  pole,  or  bejuco,  or  cord  of  fique,  pass- 
ing along  the  slender  rafters.  The  plant  grows  here  in  abun- 
dant quantities,  so  that  this  region  may  yet  export  from  it  a 
cordage  like  Manilla.  Fique  is  another  name  for  its  fibre. 

While  the  camp  was  building  another  venomous  snake  was 
killed,  of  which  I  saved  the  head.  I  hung  my  hammock  under 
the  rancho;  leaving  room  enough  for  the  rest  of  them  beneath 
me.  We  remained  all  Thursday  at  Las  Playas.  They  hunted, 
but  killed  nothing  but  a  pava — Penelope — not  so  large  as  a 
common  fowl,  and  two  small  birds.  Here  I  found  an  Agave,  I 
think,  much  more  like  the  century-plant  of  Mexico  than  the 
Fourcroya  is.  From  my  seeing  it  in  but  one  place  among  the 
settlements,  I  infer  that  it  is  indigenous ;  still  they  call  it  Ca- 
buya de  Mejico.  Don  Antonio  has  a  great  horror  of  heresy,  so 
that  our  debates  on  religious  points  served  to  make  the  time 
pass  where,  for  want  of  house  and  candle-ends,  the  other  game 
(cards)  could  not  be  played  so  well. 

I  asked  him  whether  the  Virgin  could  be  in  two  places  at 
once.  He  thought  it  possible.  In  a  thousand  places?  He 
thought  not.  If  a  thousand  persons  were  talking  to  her  at  once, 


NEW  GRANADA. 

could  she  hear  them  all,  and  know  every  thing  that  every  one 
did?  He  thought  not;  but  why  all  these  questions?  "For 
this  reason,"  I  replied :  "  God  is  omniscient  and  omnipresent ; 
therefore,  if  all  the  world  were  praying  to  Him  at  once,  he  would 
be  with  them  all,  and  know  every  thing  that  they  said,  thought, 
and  felt ;  but  if  too  many  prayed  to  the  Virgin  at  once,  I  feared 
that  some  of  them  would  lose  their  trouble ;  therefore  I  thought 
it  most  prudent  to  pray  to  God  in  the  first  instance."  Before 
Besero  had  finished  his  answer,  I  fear  I  was  so  far  asleep  as  to 
assent  to  it. 

On  Friday  morning  the  others  were  driven  to  make  inroads 
on  the  rice,  which  had  thus  far  been  reserved  to  me.  They  tried 
the  experiment  of  frying  dry  rice  in  lard,  of  which  they  had 
brought  a  bladderful,  just  as  Scotch  snuff  is  elsewhere  put  up. 
Dry  rice  fries  harder  and  harder,  if  any  thing.  When  they  aban- 
doned it,  I  added  water,  tore  the  two  small  birds  in  bits,  and 
made  a  stew  for  the  starving  dogs.  Hunters  do  not  think  raw 
meat  agrees  with  dogs  until  they  become  accustomed  to  it. 

After  breakfast  we  recrossed  to  the  north  bank  of  the  Tulua, 
and  pursued  our  way  up  to  Jicaramata.  We  camped  early,  but 
in  a  place  where  Fourcroya  is  too  scarce  to  build  a  good  rancho. 
I  had  to  clear  a  spot  to  hang  my  hammock  between  two  trees. 
Each  day  the  process  of  drying  paper  by  a  fire  built  for  the  pur- 
pose is  becoming  a  more  severe  task,  but  upon  this  depends  all 
my  hope  of  bringing  out  my  plants.  Here  a  deer  was  shot.  It 
was  probably  Cervus  Peronei,  similar  to  C.  Virginiana,  but  con- 
siderably smaller.  We  made  it  last  us  two  meals,  and  gave  the 
dogs  nothing  but  the  viscera,  the  bones,  and,  lastly,  the  skin. 
We  had  salt,  and  I  cooked  my  own  dinner  on  a  spit,  and  found 
it  delicious.  I  salted  another  piece,  and  plastered  it  against  a 
tree,  out  of  dogs'  reach :  this  was  my  breakfast.  I  am  so  far 
driven  by  necessity  that  I  now  claim  my  share  of  the  cheese 
they  take  with  the  chocolate.  I  think,  in  a  day  or  two,  I  could 
eat  green  plantains,  or  even  sancocho. 

On  Saturday,  Dr.  Quintero,  Dr.  Damian  Caicedo,  Miguel  and 
Manuel  Vicente,  and  a  peon,  went  with  me  to  Guavito,  the  in- 
nermost pasture.  The  continual  slopes  toward  the  river,  which 
hitherto  have  rarely  allowed  an  acre  of  level  ground  in  a  square 
mile,  seem  to  have  so  far  intermitted,  that  from  Jicaramata  up 


JICARAMATA.  497 

the  land  is  as  level  as  in  ordinary  rough  New  England  towns. 
Here  we  passed  a  spot  that  might  make  a  fine  farm  after  drain- 
ing off  one  or  two  pools — lagunetas.  But,  at  the  ordinary  rate 
of  South  American  progress,  it  must  yet  be  a  thousand  years  be- 
fore a  wheel-road  will  be  made  here. 

A  thick  wood  intervened  between  here  and  our  Ultima  Thule, 
Guavito.  We  had  great  difficulty  in  rinding  the  almost  obso- 
lete path  to  this  pasture,  which,  distant  as  it  is  from  human  hab- 
itation, is  probably  only  two  thirds  up  to  the  dividing  ridge  be- 
tween the  Cauca  and  the  Magdalena.  Guavito  seems  to  be  left 
to  grow  over  without  burning  off.  These  pastures  are  valuable, 
because  mules  brought  up  here  have  surer  feet  and  harder  hoofs. 
This  of  Guavito  is  of  less  value,  as  beasts  of  prey  infest  it  more. 
Still  farther  up  we  can  see  the  naked  summits  of  hills  far  above 
us,  apparently  destitute  of  rock  as  is  the  ground  where  we  are. 
Those,  however,  are  paramo,  and  not,  like  these,  kept  open  by 
fire.  Wild  cows  are  said  to  live  there  unowned. 

Here  we  held  a  council.  Miguel  and  Manuel  Vicente  built  a 
rancho  in  the  woods ;  Quintero,  Damian,  and  I  hunted  for  cin- 
chona ;  and  the  peon  went  back  for  the  rest  of  the  party,  who 
had  staid  behind  to  hunt.  After  some  hours  in  the  woods  be- 
tween Guavito  and  Jicaramata,  we  went  back  to  meet  the  oth- 
ers. We  met  part  of  them  halfway,  bringing  part  of  the  things. 
Don  Modesto  was  sick,  and  would  go  no  farther.  Tascon  and 
Lorenzo,  the  peon,  were  to  stay  with  him.  We  all  agreed  to 
turn  back,  and  came  hungry  to  a  camp  where  there  was  little 
to  eat. 

A  new  council  was  held,  and  the  state  of  our  larder  was  such 
that  I  advised  without  scruple  a  retreat  on  Sunday  morning  to 
El  Chorro.  I  stipulated,  however,  that  a  peon  should  bring  on 
my  horse,  etc.,  and  allow  me  to  spend  the  day  on  foot  and  alone. 
This  night  the  rancho,  which  had  been  enlarged,  admitted  my 
hammock,  and  my  encauchado  was  made  part  of  the  roof  of  it. 

Sunday  I  spent  alone,  but  not  in  a  state  of  physical  rest.  I 
enjoyed  the  day  better  than  many  others.  Only  once  the  party 
behind  me  lost  their  way,  and  I  had  to  direct  them,  from  an  op- 
posite hill,  by  shouts  and  signs,  till  they  at  length  reached  a 
path.  I  was  so  lightly  clad  that  I  feared,  also,  some  danger  of 
being  emparamado,  or  benumbed;  but  I  tripped  rapidly  over  the 

II 


498  NEW  GRANADA. 

coldest  part  of  the  way.  I  arrived  before  5  at  El  Chorro,  and 
found  Besero  and  his  peones  there.  The  others  came  in  soon 
after,  having  abandoned  one  saddle-beast,  which  was  brought 
home  some  weeks  after,  as  I  have  been  told. 

On  Monday  morning  we  ate  every  thing  except  a  little  choc- 
olate and  perhaps  some  dried  beef.  The  fried  arracachas  seem- 
ed exquisite  to  a  famishing  man.  They  tasted  like  potatoes 
sliced  raw  and  fried.  I  never  have  tasted  them  so  cooked  ex- 
cept when  starving,  but  I  judge  they  might  be  good  even  to  a 
pampered  palate.  I  was  off  by  8.  We  had  intended  to  start 
at  sunrise,  but,  after  making  the  best  arrangements  possible,  ev- 
ery thing  fell  through,  and  the  last  of  the  party  did  not  leave 
till  9.  The  roads  were  horrible,  for  it  had  rained.  At  Tiem- 
ble-cul  I  dismounted,  and  walked  to  Platanal.  I  rode  to  Rio 
San  Marcos,  and  thence  walked  to  within  a  league  of  Las  Mi- 
nas.  In  the  ascent  from  San  Marcos,  Pepe's  horse  gave  out, 
was  left,  and  probably  eaten  up  that  night.  The  young  rider 
proved  a  smart  walker,  and  held  out  bravely.  He  rode  my 
horse  some,  now  one  of  the  freshest  of  the  lot. 

All  day  we  never  united :  we  were  routed.  In  the  end,  the 
dismounted  Pepe,  with  Dr.  Quintero  and  Tascon,  came  out  ahead. 
Next  came  Don  Modesto,  Chepe,  and  myself.  We  passed  the 
Picazo  at  dark,  and  before  8  we  were  at  La  Kibera.  The  re- 
mainder came  in  an  hour  after  us.  Those  who  accompanied  the 
baggage-mule  had  the  worst  of  it.  Her  load  was  but  empty 
dishes,  an  empty  saddle  or  two,  and  things  that  riders  found 
their  horses  too  weak  to  carry,  but  they  say  she  fell  about  twen- 
ty times.  Four  silver  cups,  that  ought  to  have  staid  at  home, 
came  in  ruined.  Amid  all  this,  however,  La  Pechona  was  not 
forgotten ;  the  three  bottles  came  in  unscathed.  Such  was  the 
end  of  the  expedition  to  Jicaramata. 

I  made  another  excursion,  hoping  to  reach  the  oaks  east  of 
Las  Minas  by  passing  El  Yesal,  the  gypsum  place..  In  this 
I  failed,  and  the  fruit  of  the  expedition  was  a  fine  equis  or 
x-snake,  so  called  because  he  seems  marked  over  with  that  let- 
ter. He  was  a  little  less  than  tliree  feet  long,  has  formidable 
fangs,  and  a  formidable  reputation.  As  I  could  find  no  better 
place  for  so  dangerous  a  trophy,  I  was  obliged  to  tie  the  head 
to  my  hat-band.  A  negro  spied  it  on  my  way  home,  and  wish- 


SNAKES.  499 

ed  to  buy  it  to  make  medicine  of.  He  offered  me  $3  20  for  it. 
[The  New  York  Lyceum  has  it.] 

I  must  not  forget  to  add  an  incident  that  occurred  at  La 
Paila  with  the  head  from  Las  Playas.  I  was  at  work  barefoot 
in  my  room ;  the  wind  blew  the  head  off  the  table,  and  I  trod 
on  it.  I  raised  my  foot,  and  found  the  head  hanging  to  it  by 
one  of  the  fangs,  and  the  other  broken  off,  whether  in  my  foot 
I  know  not.  Fortunately,  my  first  terror  at  being  bitten  by  a 
venomous  snake  had  long  been  past,  and  though  ever  after  I 
feared  the  possibility  of  a  bite  more  than  before,  the  terror  con- 
sequent on  a  bite,  I  hope,  will  never  be  so  great  again.  I  never 
even  mentioned  this  accident  to  the  family. 

Speaking  of  snakes,  the  account  they  give  of  one  here  is 
really  a  little  the  most  horrible  story,  I  think,  ever  invented. 
It  ties  its  tail  firmly  round  a  bush,  and  you  are  not  apt  to 
see  it  till  you  are  within  its  reach.  So  long  as  you  stand  there 
you  are  unharmed,  but  the  moment  you  try  to  fly,  quick  as 
lightning  the  miscreant  whips  his  venomous,  hooked,  and  hor- 
ribly strong  fangs  into  you.  Of  course  I  do  not  believe  a  word 
of  it. 

I  made  one  other  excursion  in  the  vicinity  of  Tulua.  This 
was  in  quest  of  a  silver  mine,  of  which  there  is  an  old  tradition, 
back  of  the  Tablazo,  east  of  the  town  of  Tulua.  To  reach  this 
from  La  Kibera  I  passed  through  the  town  of  Tulua.  It  stands 
south  of  the  River  Tulua,  and  so  you  cross  that  rather  violent 
river  on  a  high,  long,  narrow  bridge  with  no  railings.  It  con- 
sists of  hewed  beams  laid  side  by  side  from  shore  to  shore, 
sometimes  with  earth  laid  on  them.  When  one  of  them  breaks 
the  otheis  are  crowded  together,  so  that  the  width  of  this  bridge 
is  variable.  At  its  widest  some  will  never  ride  across  it, 
though  narrow  bridges  are  generally  safe  in  the  daytime,  if 
your  horse  be  not  blind  of  one  eye. 

Of  the  town  of  Tulua  I  know  little.  I  have  been  six  times 
through  it,  but  never  dismounted  in  it.  It  is  a  paved  town,  the 
cabecera  of  a  canton,  and  the  distrito  has  a  population  of  4352. 
The  Tablazo  is  an  elevated  grassy  plain,  not  so  high  as  the  Pi- 
cazo  opposite  to  it,  but  of  many  hundred  acres.  The  deep  dell 
back  of  it  may  contain  silver,  but  to  me  the  boulders  look  much 
like  those  any  where  else.  I  had  a  pleasant  day,  however,  but 


500  NEW  GRANADA. 

paid  for  it  in  a  terrible  time  for  getting  home  in  the  dark  and 
rain.  There  is  here,  as  elsewhere,  a  great  deal  of  credulity  in 
relation  to  mines  and  treasures  ;  and,  in  this  respect,  it  is  a 
misfortune  for  a  country  really  to  contain,  as  this  does,  much 
hidden  treasure,  and  also,  as  there  are  here,  rich  mines  of  gold 
and  silver  unexplored.  I  do  not  count  that  of  Tablazo  among 
them. 


CHAPTER  XXXIL 

BUGA    AND    PALMIRA. 

Rice-fields. — Mud-holes. — San  Pedro. — Buga. — Another  Horse  Story. — Zonza, 
the  Beautiful. — Rio  Guaves. — Cerrito. — Church. — Care  of  Toes  in  School. — 
Herran  Administration. — Constitution  of  1843. — Mosquera  Administration. — 
Water-mill  for  Cane.— Poor  rich  Family. — Irish  Gentleman  and  Granadan 
Wife. — How  to  spoil  a  Dinner. — Palmira. — Full  Jail. — Arithmetic. — A  Fast. 
— LL.D.'s  turned  Traders. — Cockroach  Story. — Mud,  Palms,  and  Indigenous 
Cacao. — Ferry. 

UP  the  river  we  go  again.  It  was  nearly  dark  when  we  left 
Tulua  for  San  Pedro.  I  have  since  passed  that  road  again  in 
the  night,  and  all  that  these  two  transits  would  enable  me  to 
say  is,  that  the  crossings  of  muddy  streams  make  it  terrible  in 
the  dark.  They  are,  some  of  them,  if  not  indeed  most  of  them, 
artificial  water-courses — acequias — made  for  irrigation,  and  to 
convey  water  to  houses.  The  proprietors  of  acequias  are,  of 
course,  bound  by  law  to  bridge  them,  but  they  do  it  so  rarely 
that  I  do  not  now  recollect  more  than  one  or  two  that  have  a 
bridge  which  can  be  passed.  If  we  rode  rhinoceroses  or  hippo- 
potami it  would  be  different ;  but  to  be  bespattered  by  your 
neighbors,  to  bespatter  them,  to  bespatter  yourself,  and,  worst  of 
all,  to  fear  being  absolutely  ingulfed  by  the  criminal  negligence 
of  rich  landholders,  is  trying  to  patience. 

Passing  by  daylight  over  this  road  made  a  different  impres- 
sion. There  were  other  things  besides  the  mud-fords  to  notice, 
for  the  country  is  really  beautiful ;  and,  say  your  worst  of  the 
mud,  I  have  never  lost  a  horse  in  it,  which  circumstance  con- 
vinces me  that  I  have  dreaded  it  too  much.  Here  I  saw  an 
arrozal  or  rice-field,  the  only  one  I  ever  saw,  so  rare  is  the  cul- 


HACIENDA  OF  SAN  PEDEO.  501 

ture  of  rice  in  South  America.  This  piece  was  small,  but  the 
structure  of  it  surprised  me  not  a  little.  It  was  an  absolute 
plane,  inclining  slightly  to  the  west.  On  the  upper  side  was  an 
acequia,  that  sent  over  the  field  a  sheet  of  water  about  one  eighth 
of  an  inch  thick,  that  formed  no  channels  and  covered  all  the 
ground.  A  ditch  was  made  at  the  lower  end  to  receive  the  wa- 
ter again  and  carry  it  off. 

Opposite  the  little  town  of  San  Pedro  is  a  hacienda,  to  which 
my  mind  runs  back  with  delight.  I  am  sorry  I  have  not  had 
better  opportunities  to  become  acquainted  with  the  peculiarly 
amiable  family  that  occupy  it.  Here,  as  at  La  Bibera,  the  la- 
dies sat  at  the  table  with  us.  Our  dining-room  was  the  back 
corredor ;  my  bedroom  was  the  other,  with  my  hammock  ex- 
tended from  a  window-grating  to  a  pillar  of  the  roof.  A  curious 
screen  separated  the  dining-room  from  one  of  the  nicest  gardens 
in  all  the  country.  I  did  not  at  once  discover  that  it  was  a 
thick  matting  of  a  Passiflora  with  a  very  small  flower.  There 
are  several  such  species  here.  This  formed  a  dense  curtain, 
capable  of  shutting  out  the  sun  and  admitting  the  air — a  peren- 
nial veil  of  leaf  and  flower. 

Directly  under  the  eaves  of  the  house  ran  a  cheerful  rill  in  a 
channel  of  burned  bricks.  Water  for  the  table  was  dipped  up 
at  the  upper  end.  The  plates,  as  taken  from  the  table,  were  set 
in  it  farther  down.  Most  operations  which  are  done  in  dishes 
and  pails  of  water  in  our  kitchens  are  here  done  in  the  acequia, 
if  there  be  one.  There  seemed  to  be  a  mystery  about  this  ace- 
quia, for  I  could  not  tell  where  this  water  could  come  from.  The 
house  was  west  of  the  road,  and  the  water  must  cross  it ;  but, 
apparently,  the  house  stands  higher  than  any  point  of  the  road 
that  I  could  see.  I  have  spoken  already  of  the  acequeros'  skill, 
the  results  of  which  here  puzzle  me. 

In  the  morning  we  were  astonished  with  a  breakfast  at  six ! 
It  is  little  short  of  a  miracle,  being,  perhaps,  two  hours  earlier 
than  any  other  I  ever  heard  of  in  all  the  land.  The  family  can 
be  no  ordinary  people  certainly.  Here  I  filled  a  bag  with  or- 
anges, which  were  as  abundant  and  as  good  as  man  could  de- 
sire. They  have  also  cocoanut-trees,  which,  if  they  do  not  yet 
bear,  are  majestic  ornaments,  and  keep  up  a  very  pretty  music 
hi  the  night-breeze  by  the  rustle  of  their  leaflets.  They  need 
twelve  years  here  to  grow  in. 


502  NEW  GKANADA. 

We  were  off  earlier  than  most  families  could  have  sent  us 
away  with  chocolate  only.  A  little  above,  I  saw  some  trees 
rather  taller  and  more  slender  than  most  apple-trees.  I  thought 
at  first  they  were  deformed  by  dozens  of  hornets'  nests.  I  look- 
ed again,  and  really  the  supposed  nests  were  the  fruit.  It  was 
the  guanabana  (Anona  muricata),  called  in  Jamaica  sour-sop. 
The  flesh  is  firm,  slightly  fibrous,  so  as  to  eat  beautifully  with 
a  fork.  Elegance  of  eating  is  a  high  recommendation  to  a  fruit. 
However  delicious  the  flavor,  you  can  not  enjoy  a  fruit  that 
smears  fingers  and  face,  clogs  the  teeth,  or  keeps  you  on  the 
alert  to  separate  eatable  from  uneatable.  The  guanabana  is  as 
large  as  the  largest  pine-apple,  slightly  acid,  and  not  quite  sweet 
enough,  and  with  no  aromatic  flavor.  The  pulp  separates  in 
morsels,  and  is  free  from  the  rind  and  seeds.  Two  other  Ano- 
nas  are  to  be  mentioned.  The  A.  Chirimolia,  the  chirimoya,  is 
smaller,  of  less  regular  shape,  more  fragile  rind  and  tender  pulp 
than  the  guanabana.  It  is  by  many  reckoned  the  best  fruit  in 
the  world,  and  by  others  rejected  in  disgust.  Its  flavor  is  al- 
most exactly  that  of  its  congener  of  the  Valley  of  the  Mississip- 
pi, the  Anona  or  Asimina  triloba,  there  called  papaw.  The  An- 
ona squamosa  is  of  the  size  of  a  large  apple,  much  like  the  chi- 
rimoya in  physical  constitution,  but  inferior  in  flavor.  They 
call  it  anon.  The  guanabana,  which  I  prefer,  is  undervalued 
here,  just  as  our  Northern  papaw  is  abandoned  to  negroes  and 
opossums. 

After  picking  from  a  guanabana  all  I  wanted,  dropping  seeds 
along  the  road  for  a  mile,  and  eating  with  my  fingers  without 
unfitting  them  to  handle  white  satin,  I  threw  away  the  rest. 
Soon  after  ordinary  breakfast-time,  we  were  rattling,  in  a  long 
single  file,  over  the  pavements  of  Buga,  the  capital  of  the  prov- 
ince of  Cauca.  After  turning  various  corners,  the  head  of  the 
column  rode  into  a  house,  and  we  all  followed.  We  dismount- 
ed in  the  patio,  and  soon  were  seated  in  a  parlor  more  civilized 
than  usual.  I  received  no  introductions,  but  the  conversation 
showed  that  I  was  known  to  them.  In  explanation,  I  was  told 
that  one  of  the  young  LL.D.'s  with  whom  I  crossed  the  mount- 
ain was  a  cousin  to  them.  Some  dulce  and  water  were  served, 
but  no  cigars  offered.  Per  contra,  they  had  some  curious  arti- 
cles of  vertu,  images,  etc.,  made  of  tobacco :  they  were  exposed 


MODE  OF  WASHING  CLOTHES.  503 

to  the  inconvenience  of  needing  to  be  moistened  with  aguardiente 
from  time  to  time.  I  always  knew  that  tobacco  and  rum  were 
allies.  On  the  table  were  books,  and  a  portfolio  of  drawings, 
and  guitar  music.  All  these  looked  strange  to  me,  so  long  had 
I  forgotten  them. 

Buga  is  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Piedras  River,  a  broad,  shal- 
low stream,  over  which  they  think  of  throwing  a  foot-bridge  of 
guadua.  It  has  less  volume  than  the  Buga-la-Grande  and  the 
Tulua,  and  nearly  the  same  as  the  Paila.  A  vacant  space  of 
stony  ground  here  separates  the  town  from  the  river  bank.  The 
shore  is  lined  with  washerwomen  and  garments  spread  out  to 
dry.  Yankees  complain  of  the  mode  of  washing  here,  but  with 
little  justice,  I  suspect.  Steuart  describes  them  as  "  thumping 
and  squeezing  their  linen  upon  the  broad  smooth  stones,  mak- 
ing the  collar  and  wrist  buttons  rain  down  like  hail  into  the 
stream."  True,  they  wash  without  tubs  and  kettles,  and  do  not 
scald  their  clothes ;  but  I  do  not  know  that  they  injure  them, 
and,  when  a  man  tells  about  buttons  hailing  down,  I  am  in- 
clined to  think  he  exaggerates.  They  do  not  know  our  way  of 
rubbing,  nor  do  I  know  that  it  is  better.  If  a  man  must  have 
his  clothes  washed  as  they  were  in  his  mother's  kitchen,  let  him 
do  it  with  his  own  hands. 

Just  out  of  Buga,  toward  the  river,  I  noticed  a  beautiful  bush, 
with  large  red  flowers,  bright  green  leaves,  and  sharp  thorns,  as 
I  found  to  my  cost.  It  proved  to  be  a  cactate  flower,  and  was 
probably  a  Pereskia,  a  leafy  Genus  in  that  leafless  Order.  A 
few  miles  farther  south  are  three  or  four  houses,  mere  huts.  We 
will  select  one  of  them,  on  the  west  and  lower  side  of  the  road, 
and  take  seats  and  rest  in  the  piazza  while  I  tell  you  a  story. 

I  swam  a  horse  across  the  Cauca  above  here,  between  Vijes 
and  Cerrito  once,  and  before  the  horse  reached  Cerrito  he  ap- 
peared tired  out.  There  I  spent  two  days,  and  the  animal  fared 
well.  The  next  day  I  came  down  here,  less  than  fifteen  miles. 
Some  miles  above  the  poor  horse  flagged.  I  thought  he  could 
not  possibly  be  tired  till  I  had  punished  him  with  a  severity 
that  makes  me  ache  now.  He  so  far  gave  out  that  I  was 
obliged  to  dismount  and  drive  him.  The  poor  fellow  knew  that 
his  home  was  forty  miles  below,  and  probably  despaired  living 
to  reach  it  again ;  so  when  he  came  to  a  narrow  lane  (you  see 


504  NEW  GRANADA. 

fences  are  more  common  here  than  below),  he  suddenly  turned 
into  it,  and  tried  to  run  away.  Poor  fellow,  he  could  not  run ; 
a  cripple  could  have  overtaken  him.  I  brought  him  back,  but 
did  not  strike  him  for  trying  to  run. 

So  I  came  to  this  house,  and  the  occupant  was  in  the  yard. 
I  asked  him  what  ailed  my  horse.  He  said,  He  is  destroncado. 
The  word  means  maimed,  but  he  meant  exhausted — not  tired, 
but  used  up  as  if  by  a  typhoid  fever.  He  took  him  in ;  we  un- 
saddled him.  He  went  and  brought  some  cane.  I  drew  my 
machete,  which  was  tied  to  the  saddle  under  the  flap,  and  cut 
up  the  cane.  He  could  still  eat.  Then  I  walked  to  Buga  to 
get  advice,  and  a  horse  if  I  could.  They  told  me  I  could  prob- 
ably get  him  to  San  Pedro  next  day  by  going  most  of  the  way 
on  foot,  and  very  slowly.  I  dined  at  Buga.  At  dark  I  was 
back.  I  cut  up  all  the  cane  the  horse  would  eat.  I  retired, 
hanging  my  hammock  in  the  little  room  that  served  as  bedroom 
for  the  man,  his  wife,  and  their  children. 

In  the  morning  I  cut  more  cane.  They  told  me  to  wait  till 
after  breakfast,  and  let  him  eat.  I  breakfasted  on  fried  eggs 
and  fried  plantains,  with  a  good  cup  of  chocolate.  When  I  of- 
fered to  pay  them,  they  refused ;  I  protested,  and  the  woman 
consented  to  take  half  a  dime  to  pay  for  the  eggs  she  bought 
for  me  at  the  house  opposite.  I  urged,  but  the  utmost  they 
would  receive  was  a  dime.  Bless  them  ! 

I  mounted  my  horse  at  the  Piedras,  and  rode  through  the 
back  streets  of  Buga.  I  passed  a  place  where  they  had  killed 
a  cow,  and  were  pinning  the  hide  to  the  ground.  On  the  fence 
were  half  a  dozen  gallinazos,  waiting  for  a  chance  to  pick  up  a 
morsel  of  meat ;  then  they  looked  at  my  horse,  and,  by  a  wick- 
ed leer,  seemed  to  insinuate  that  I  was  trying  to  cheat  them. 
Somehow  I  felt  guilty,  for  they  looked  at  poor  Rozinante  with 
the  eye  of  a  gratified  connoisseur.  I  could  have  knocked  them 
off  the  fence  with  a  good  will. 

"  Step  by  step  goes  a  great  ways,"  says  a  Spanish  proverb. 
San  Pedro,  prompt  hospitality,  sympathy,  and  a  fresh  horse, 
were  before  me.  And  I  was  not  disappointed,  although  I  do 
not  even  know  the  name  of  the  good  people  who  live  there.  I 
sent  the  horse  they  kindly  loaned  me  back  from  La  Paila  by 
mail.  Weeks  afterward,  I  was  riding  home  from  the  Medio, 


THE  LOVELIEST  SPOT  ON  EAETH.  5Q5 

when  Pepe  Sanmartin  overtook  me,  and  asked  me  "if  I  knew 
what  horse  I  was  riding."  I  told  him  I  did  not.  "  Well,"  said 
he,  "it  is  the  caballo  destroncado/' 

We  left  Buga  about  11.  By  1  we  had  crossed  the  Zonza,  a 
small  river,  with  a  few  houses  south  of  it.  Here  the  sun  be- 
came intolerable ;  and  had  the  day  been  as  long  as  in  northern 
summers,  it  would  have  been  nearly  as  severe.  We  stopped  at 
a  venta,  where  a  billiard-table  occupied  the  sala.  I  went  back 
to  the  river  to  swim.  The  water  then,  about  2  P.M.,  was  at 
nearly  100°  F.  It  had  a  strange  effect  on  coming  out.  I  was 
dressing  myself  in  the  shade,  and  I  found  it  too  cold.  I  had 
to  step  into  the  sun  to  warm  myself.  I  started  a  little  be- 
fore the  others,  and  stopped  to  see  them  building  a  church  with 
adobe.  In  all  New  Granada  I  have  seen  no  new  church  in  the 
process  of  construction  except  at  Zonza  and  Overo.  All  the 
others  are  either  finished  or  abandoned.  I  rode  on,  and  stopped 
on  a  gentle  rise  to  wait  for  the  company.  Never  have  I  seen, 
and  never  expect  to  see,  in  this  mortal  world,  another  place  so 
beautiful.  The  ground  was  gently  swelling ;  clumps  of  trees 
were  scattered  here  and  there  in  every  direction.  The  Quin- 
dio  range  in  the  east  terminated  in  plains  at  some  miles  distant, 
and  the  river-forest,  too,  had  retired  far  from  the  road. 

Nestled  in  the  distant  hills  we  could  see  the  buildings  of  a 
hacienda  that  bore  the  appropriate  name  of  Paradise  Vale — Val 
Paraiso — just  high  enough  to  make  a  perceptible  difference  in 
climate.  Much  of  the  land  about  here  is  irrigated,  and,  there- 
fore, of  perennial  greenness.  With  ordinary  diligence,  three 
crops  of  maize,  and  four  of  many  things,  could  be  raised  here. 
Few  things  besides  wheat,  potatoes,  spices,  and  maple-sugar 
could  not  be  raised  here.  Bolivar,  too,  was  struck-  with  the 
beauty  of  this  place  as  he  passed  through.  He  asked  its  name. 
He  was  told  Zonza  (an  imbecile,  fern.}.  "  What  brutality," 
said  the  Liberator,  "to  give  so  unworthy  a  name  to  the  fairest 
spot  in  the  Italy  of  the  New  World !" 

Soon  we  came  to  more  muddy  crossings  of  acequias — some 
bad,  and  others  worse ;  and  I  was  told  that  all  of  them,  for 
many  miles,  were  derived  from  the  Rio  Guaves.  Then  we 
came  to  the  river  itself,  and  it  was  different  from  all  the  rest. 
The  beds  of  all  the  other  streams  are  from  8  to  20  feet  below 


506 


NEW  GRANADA. 


the  banks.  This  could  not  be  more  than  4 ;  and  yet  it  rip- 
pled away  over  a  pebbly  bottom  vas  pure,  as  happy,  and  as  noisy 
as  childhood  ought  to  be.  Farther  on  we  left  to  our  right  the 
direct  road  to  Cali,  which  leans  toward  the  Cauca  for  some 
miles,  then  turns  square  down  to  it  through  a  muddy  lane  of 
forest  some  miles  long,  and  terrible  in  the  rainy  season. 

Before  sunset  we  were  at  Cerrito,  the  only  regularly  laid  out 
town  (with  a  Plaza)  this  side  of  Cartago,  except  the  paved  towns 
and  Libraida.  In  the  centre  of  the  Plaza  stands  a  ceiba  (Bom- 
bax  Ceiba),  the  most  glorious  shade-tree  I  ever  set  my  eyes 
on ;  in  size  it  is  equal  to  a  large  elm,  in  shape  a  little  more 
regular,  the  trunk  almost  smooth  enough  to  varnish,  and  the 
thick  green  leaves  already  varnished.  Just  east  of  it  is  the 
church,  of  which*  the  adjoining  figure  is  a  faithful  delineation, 
kindly  furnished  me  by  the  artist-traveler,  Mr.  Church. 


CHURCH   XT   CERBITO. 


The  front  door,  the  bell-tower,  the  higher  roof  at  the  farther 
end  over  the  principal  altar,  and  the  wing,  which  is  the  sacris- 
tia,  are  a  fair  illustration  of  the  usual  arrangement  in  churches 
in  New  Granada,  Very  few  indeed  have  the  sacristia  on  the 
other  side,  or  behind  the  altar.  The  mercy-door  is,  of  course, 
on  the  side  hidden  from  view,  for,  as  you  enter  the  front  door, 
it  is  nearly  always  at  or  near  the  middle  of  the  left-hand  side. 


CEBEITO.  507 

I  visited  the  boys'  school  here  for  less  than  five  minutes  one 
day.  I  do  not  always  learn  as  much  that  is  new  by  a  longer 
visit.  It  is  conducted  on  the  Lancasterian  principle,  as  are  all 
the  public  schools  here.  Monitors  were  at  this  moment  pass- 
ing around,  examining  the  toes  of  the  boys,  cutting  their  nails, 
and  extracting  the  niguas.  This  is  a  part  of  the  regular  busi- 
ness of  Saturday  afternoon,  and  wisely  enjoined,  so  neglected 
are  too  many  of  these  children  at  home. 

Here  we  turned  at  a  right  angle  to  the  east,  passed  the  mer- 
cy-door of  the  church,  and,  as  we  left  the  village,  entered  the 
estate  of  Aurora,  the  property  of  Serior  Miguel  Cabal,  late  go- 
bernador  of  the  adjoining  province  of  Buenaventura.  We  were 
soon  seated  at  a  plain,  prompt  dinner.  I  found  our  host  a  man 
of  unusual  intelligence,  and,  what  is  more,  of  a  candor  that  leads 
me  to  rely  more  on  his  statements  than  on  those  of  any  other 
one  man  in  all  New  Granada.  He  is  a  Liberal,  and,  therefore, 
I  thought  it  a  good  time  to  get  information  on  the  Conservador 
presidents  Herran  and  Mosquera.  I  rely  upon  little  here  that 
does  not  come  in  the  way  of  admissions,  and  sometimes  very 
reluctant  ones. 

The  successor  of  President  Marquez  was  to  be  elected  by 
Congress  in  1841.  It  could  riot  have  been  a  quiet  time,  for  the 
minority,  it  is  said,  attempted  to  break  up  Congress  by  a  want 
of  a  quorum.  All  of  them  that  could  be  caught  were  put  in 
prison  till  enough  were  obtained  for  the  purpose.  One  still 
was  wanting  to  make  a  quorum  when  they  were  brought  into 
the  hall  for  the  election  of  president ;  that  one  lacking  of  a  quo- 
rum was  supplied  by  the  corpse  of  a  member  who  had  died.  A 
majority  of  this  whole  number,  of  living  and  dead,  of  free  agents 
and  prisoners,  gave  their  votes  for  General  Pedro  Alcantara 
Herran.  So  says  Samper,  A-puntamientos,  p.  345 ;  but  I  am 
almost  driven  by  all  farther  inquiries  to  the  reluctant  and  ter- 
rible conclusion  that  this  whole  story  is  an  unfounded  falsehood, 
if  not  a  shameless  lie ! 

General  Herran  is  son-in-law  and  companion  in  arms  to  his 
successor,  General  Mosquera.  Their  campaigns  together  had 
been  chiefly  against  rebels  on  this  side  of  the  Quindio,  and  here 
were  their  warmest  friends  and  bitterest  enemies. 

Herran  is  not  a  great  man ;  but,  after  examining  what  his 


508  NEW   GRANADA. 

worst  enemies  say,  I  conclude  that  he  made  a  good  president. 
His  worst  act  was  calling  back  the  Jesuits,  who  had  been  un- 
justly expelled  by  Carlos  III,  by  a  decree  of  18th  Oct.,  1767. 
Up  to  1740,  never  were  men  more  faithful  and  true  to  the  inter- 
ests of  humanity,  as  they  understood  them,  than  the  Jesuits  in 
New  Granada.  Then  they  were  forbidden  to  extend  their  op- 
erations, and  their  restless  spirit  could  find  no  other  vent  than 
in  increasing  their  wealth  and  power.  They  were  becoming 
more  powerful  than  the  King  and  the  Viceroy,  but  had  shown 
no  disposition  to  abuse  that  power.  They  were  expelled  for 
not  being  as  inefficient,  as  useless,  and  as  wicked  as  all  the  world 
around  them.  As  they  went  forth  at  night,  lest  a  tumult  should 
arise  among  their  converts,  and  on  foot,  leaving  their  immense 
wealth  the  spoil  to  the  crown,  civilization  wept.  Half-civilized 
Indians  threw  away  their  clothes,  left  their  villages  to  decay 
and  their  fields  to  become  thickets  again,  and  went  to  hunting 
and  fishing.  Many  of  these  missionaries  died  of  want  before 
they  found  a  refuge  in  Italy  and  England. 

This  law  never  was  repealed,  but  in  1842  Congress  author- 
ized the  government  to  invite  missionaries  from  Europe  to  come 
and  civilize  the  Indians.  Herran  has  a  brother  high  in  ecclesi- 
astical rank.  All  churches  and  all  safe  governments  are  con- 
servative. By  some  unhappy  fatality,  the  President  was  in- 
duced to  consent  to  a  return  of  the  Jesuits,  who  had  been  grow- 
ing more  wicked  and  dangerous  every  year  since  their  expulsion. 
They  came  and  settled  in  Bogota  and  other  large  places,  already 
overstocked  with  idle  and  inefficient  priests,  and  did  their  best 
to  make  themselves  useful  and  necessary  to  the  Church.  We 
shall  hear  of  them  farther  on. 

The  course  of  the  Herran  administration  was  a  general,  slow, 
safe  reform.  He  and  his  chief  friends  were  slaveholders,  and 
yet  slavery  was  verging  toward  a  sure  extinction.  None  now 
born  were  slaves  for  life.  He  systematized  instruction  and  re- 
pressed vagrancy.  The  laws  were  all  compiled.  But  one  of 
the  most  admirable  of  his  works  was  a  penal  code — a  system- 
atic classification  of  crimes  and  punishments,  such  as  is  per- 
haps unknown  in  the  English  language.  Another  long  essay 
issued  during  this  administration  I  have  never  read,  nor  will  I 
venture  to  criticise,  except  for  its  length  and  its  inappropriate- 


HEEEAN  AND  MOSQUEEA  ADMINISTEATIONS.    509 

ness.    It  is  called  the  "Constitution  of  1843,"  the  second  of 
New  Granada.     I  think  it  must  have  fewer  positive  faults  than  ; 
its  more  democratic  successor  of  1853. 

Herran  was  succeeded  by  his  father-in-law,  General  Tomas 
Cipriano  Mosquera.  More  aristocratic  in  his  feelings  than  his 
predecessor,  perhaps  with  more  talent,  and  certainly  with  no  « 
less  patriotism,  Mosquera  was  unquestionably  a  good  president, 
and,  in  my  opinion,  the  best  New  Granada  has  ever  had,  and  as 
good  as  the  best  we  have  had  since  New  Granada  was  a  nation. 
They  charge  him  with  great  cruelties  in  suppressing  previous 
civil  wars.  It  may  be  so ;  but  he  would  have  been  accused  of 
severity  had  he  been  only  a  little  too  lenient.  A  Conservative, 
his  whole  administration  was  a  series  of  cautious  changes  for 
the  better.  A  brother  to  the  archbishop,  he  brought  on  himself 
the  censures  of  the  Pope  by  abridging  the  privileges  of  the 
clergy.  A  slaveholder,  he  still  was  true  to  the  principle  of  grad- 
ual extirpation  of  slavery.  Immensely  rich,  he  labored  to  bring 
about  a  change  in  the  system  of  taxation  that  would  be  of  spe- 
cial benefit  to  the  poor.  He  did  his  utmost  to  benefit  intercom- 
munication by  land  and  water,  and  his  liberality  in  the  conces- 
sions to  the  Panama  Railroad  should  teach  our  nation  to  respect 
his  name  and  the  character  of  his  country  that  has  ever  sup- 
ported them. 

"Why,  then,"  I  asked  of  Seiior  Cabal,  "did  your  party  op- 
pose the  administration  of  Mosquera  ?" 

"  It  was  just  a  piece  of  ambition  and  desire  for  office,"  said  he. 

Samper,  the  craziest  of  Red  Republican  theorists,  explains  it 
in  these  words:  "Parties  have  sometimes  incomprehensible  ab- 
errations." While  he  condemns  much  in  Mosquera  that  I  ap- 
prove, he  admits  that  his  party  ought  to  have  voted  for  him. 
These  are  his  words :  "Judging  by  appearances,  skillfully  got 
up  to  produce  a  complete  hallucination,  in  an  evil  hour  they  de- 
cided on  the  disastrous  General  Borrero." 

Seiior  Cabal  has  an  interesting  library,  and  takes  the  "  Cor- 
reo  de  Ultramar."  He  has  a  garden,  and  good  orange-trees. 
He  has  a  cane-mill  and  a  distillery.  I  purposely  avoided  vis- 
iting the  last,  out  of  friendship  to  the  estimable  owner.  His 
cane-mill  is  a  sugar-factory,  which  is  rarely  the  case  here.  As 
it  must  be  20  miles  from  the  nearest  waterfall  (100  quite  prob- 


510  NEW  GRANADA. 

ably,  for  reckless  countries  can  have  none),  and  half  a  mile  from 
the  Cerrito  at  a  point  lower  than  his  mill,  I  would  have  thought 
it  a  piece  of  insanity  for  him  to  attempt  to  introduce  water-pow- 
er. But  he  has  succeeded,  thanks  to  the  cheapness  of  labor, 
and  the  miraculous  skill  of  Granadan  acequeros.  Even  when 
accomplished  it  looks  absurd. 

After  breakfast,  horses  were  brought  out  for  a  ride.  There  is 
a  young  person  in  the  family,  of  the  middle  class,  between  lady 
and  peasant.  In  aiding  her  to  mount,  as  she  put  her  foot  in  my 
hand  I  discovered  that  it  was  bare.  I  could  not  easily  over- 
come my  prejudice  that  human  skin  is  less  nice  to  touch  than 
the  tanned  hide  of  an  ox.  The  governor  was  the  last  to  mount. 
As  he  did  so,  his  horse  started,  threw  him,  and  dislocated  both 
his  wrists.  I  rode  off,  and  in  a  few  moments  returned  with  a 
doctor ;  but  surgical  cases  are  so  rare  here  that  much  skill  is  not 
to  be  expected.  My  residence  in  South  America  has  brought 
to  my  knowledge  but  one  more  dislocation  (of  the  humerus — set 
by  the  horse-breaker  Toledo),  and  nothing  else  worse  than 
bruises  and  scratches,  of  which  mine  in  the  Quindio  (p.  366) 
was  perhaps  the  very  worst.  Unfortunately,  therefore,  the  dis- 
location was  not  properly  reduced,  and,  weeks  afterward,  the  re- 
duction was  performed  in  Cali. 

La  Senora  de  Cabal  had  three  pairs  of  birds  of  different  spe- 
cies. Far  the  most  interesting  of  these  were  two  little  parrots, 
about  the  size  of  canaries,  unable  to  talk,  indeed,  but  the  most 
intelligent  birds  I  ever  saw.  Mr.  Jenney,  of  Honda,  kindly 
made  me  a  present  of  a  pair  of  the  same  species.  I  suffered  ev- 
ery thing  for  them.  I  carried  them  on  foot  ten  miles  in  a  box, 
cared  for  them  all  the  way  down  the  Magdalena,  and  in  the  ter- 
rible ride  of  night  and  day  from  Calamar  to  Cartagena  (65  miles 
of  such  roads,  in  26  hours),  I  carried  their  cage  hung  round  my 
neck.  Bruised  and  shaken  as  they  were,  they  would  cling  to 
the  wires  to  get  a  chance  to  look  into  my  face,  and  I  never 
spoke  to  my  horse  but  they  answered  me.  At  Cartagena  this 
rough  life  was  over ;  but  at  the  very  sea-side  one  died  and  the 
other  was  lost.  Never  have  I  mourned  for  any  of  the  brute 
creation  as  for  these  poor  little  parrots. 

Near  here  I  once  made  an  instructive  visit.  It  was  a  reunion 
of  nearly  all  our  company  over  the  Quindio  at  the  house  of  one 


AN  IRISH  CONSUL.  511 

of  them.  He  met  us  on  horseback  soon  after  entering  on  the 
estate,  and  cordially  embraced  me  without  stopping  our  horses. 
We  arrived  about  5.  As  good  a  dinner  as  could  be  prepared 
on  so  short  a  notice  was  served  at  9,  and  all  the  very  large  and 
interesting  family  sat  down  with  us.  We  left  the  next  morn- 
ing at  8,  without  even  chocolate.  This,  I  am  told,  was  caused 
by  the  inefficiency  of  servants  since  the  liberation  of  the  slaves. 
Five  years  ago  we  might  have  breakfasted  at  this  hour.  Serv- 
ants have  no  motive  to  work  where  a  sparse  population  occupy 
a  fertile  soil  in  a  climate  of  perpetual  autumn.  We  breakfast- 
ed, with  two  or  three  wooden  spoons,  at  a  dirty,  wayside  venta 
on  what  we  could  pick  up. 

A  little  to  the  right  of  the  main  road  to  Palmira  I  was  told 
there  was  an  Englishman  named  Birr/-ni.  He  was  said  not  to 
treat  his  wife  very  well  as  to  clothing  and  family  comforts,  but 
such  was  my  desire  to  see  one  of  our  race  that  I  decided  to  call. 
Mr.  Byrne  proved  to  be  an  Irish  gentleman  and  a  Catholic,  an 
ex-consul  of  Great  Britain.  His  wife  is  a  fortunate  woman  in 
the  respects  named :  I  know  of  not  another  in  the  Cauca  that 
need  not  envy  her.  She  is  a  Granadina,  and  speaks  no  En- 
glish in  the  hearing  of  strangers,  but  appears  like  one  of  our 
race.  His  two  oldest  children,  a  boy  and  girl,  are  evidently 
English,  though  they  can  not  speak  a  word  of  our  language  yet. 
If  ever  a  poor  home-sick  traveler  comes  here,  who  can  not  talk 
any  Spanish,  how  would  he  be  tantalized  by  the  company  of 
such  a  lady  and  such  children ! 

Where  government  pays  a  foreign  resident  a  sufficient  sum  to 
maintain  a  family,  it  ought  to  select  one  of  our  own  race  and  re- 
ligion, and  require  him  to  take  with  him  a  family  of  the  same. 
But  consuls  are  either  inadequately  paid,  good  business  men, 
living  by  commerce  and  kind  by  instinct,  or,  if  they  are  amply 
salaried,  you  find  them  rewarded  politicians,  bent  on  laying  up 
something  to  indemnify  themselves  for  outlays  in  past  elections. 
Hence  I  would  sooner  give  a  friend  an  introduction  to  the  fam- 
ily of  3Ir.  Byrne,  foreign  as  it  is  in  every  thing  but  sympathy, 
than  to  a  minister  sent  abroad  by  a  political  triumph. 

I  committed  one  act  of  consummate  folly  at  Mr.  Byrne's. 
While  there  was  preparing  such  a  dinner  as  I  shall  not  find 
again  this  side  of  the  Quindio,  I  went  into  the  sugar-house  and 


512  NEW  GRANADA. 

ate  so  freely  of  fragrant,  warm  sugar  as  to  actually  unfit  me  for 
eating  any  thing  else.  Here  I  saw  molasses  drained  from  the 
sugar  absolutely  thrown  away.  It  is  called  miel  de  purga,  and 
these  sirup-eaters  are  too  dainty  to  touch  it. 

Mr.  Byrne  is  a  flourishing  farmer.  While  other  foreign  so- 
journers  here  have  made  it  their  study  "  how  to  buy  cheap  and 
sell  dear,"  he  has  been  ever  ready  to  buy  human  labor  when  it 
was  in  the  market,  and  so  bestows  it  on  his  broad  domain  as 
to  add  to  its  permanent  value.  This  is  too  slow  a  way  to  get 
rich  to  suit  most  who  go  abroad  in  search  of  wealth,  but  such  a 
man  is  a  benefactor  to  the  country.  I  know  not  that  an  ex- 
perimental farm  would  do  more  for  it.  His  buildings  are  in 
excellent  condition,  and  the  house  is  painted.  This  is  so  ex- 
traordinary a  thing  that  I  know  of  no  word  better  to  express  it 
in  Spanish  than  to  say  it  is  varnished.  I  can  not  now  recol- 
lect a  square  inch  of  paint  either  on  buildings  or  other  articles 
in  all  this  valley,  except  a  varnish  applied  to  totumas  and  other 
articles  in  Pasto,  which  is  supposed  to  be  a  sort  of  resin  or  gum 
of  unknown  trees  brought  from  the  distant  head-waters  of  the 
Amazon.  This  is  usually  colored  red  with  arnotto,  warmed, 
and  applied  mechanically  in  a  thin  film  without  reducing  it  to  a 
liquid. 

I  tore  myself  away  from  the  Byrnes  with  a  regret  that  none 
but  a  sojourner  in  a  strange  land  can  know.  I  met  him  and 
his  boy  twice  afterward,  but  we  were  both  journeying,  and 
could  exchange  but  a  few  words ;  but  I  shall  long  remember 
them.  For  a  little  while  still  our  road  lay  up  the  Cerrito,  which 
is  only  a  good  mill-stream.  Farther  on  we  pass  the  hacienda 
of  a  Senor  Isaacs,  an  Antillan  Jew  turned  Catholic,  married  to 
a  Catholic  wife,  and  the  father  of  quite  a  family  of  active  chil- 
dren. I  am  but  slightly  acquainted  with  them,  and  have  never 
been  at  the  hacienda. 

We  stopped  a  while  at  a  venta  on  the  banks  of  the  Sabale- 
tas,  a  larger  stream,  over  which  there  is  a  bridge  of  guadua.  It 
requires  some  courage  to  venture  across  this  frail  fabric,  although 
some  of  them  are  said  to  be  strong  enough  to  bear  a  mule.  A 
sprightly  girl  here  seemed  greatly  to  attract  the  fancy  of  my 
companion,  who  wished  her  to  go  home  with  him  and  live  with 
his  wife,  but  why,  or  in  what  capacity,  I  could  not  guess.  She 


\ 
PALMIRA.  513 

promised  to  go  at  a  future  time,  but  my  conjecture  was  that 
they  did  not  mean  any  thing,  or  that  either  supposed  the  other 
in  earnest. 

We  had  passed  below  here  a  robber,  as  they  said,  in  custody 
of  two  armed  men,  all  on  foot.  They  were  on  their  way  to 
Buga.  It  is  quite  common  to  go  armed  here,  either  with  a  pis- 
tol or  sword,  but  it  is  entirely  useless.  The  chief  reason  why 
no  more  robberies  are  committed  is,  that  they  are  not  eager  for 
money,  and,  therefore,  lack  a  motive.  I  have  never  wished  my- 
self armed,  or  protected  by  the  arms  of  another,  for  a  single  mo- 
ment. 

Palmira  stands  on  the  banks  of  a  miserable  muddy  brook. 
Why  it  stands  there  I  can  not  guess.  It  is  the  cabecera  of  the 
southern  canton  of  the  province  of  Cauca,  and  a  district  of 
10,055,  which  makes  it  the  tenth  town  in  New  Granada  in 
population.  As  it  so  happens  that  all  the  large  towns,  ex- 
cept Bogota,  are  unknown  to  us  at  home,  I  will  name  them : 
1,  Bogota,  29,649 ;  2,  Socorro,  15,015;  3,  Piedecuesta,  14,841; 
4,  Medellin,  13,755;  5,  Cali,  11,848;  6,  Sanjil,  11,528;  7, 
Velez,  11,178;  8,  Valle,*  10,544;  9,  Sonson,  10,244;  10,  Pal- 
mira, 10,055 ;  11,  Puente  Nacional,  10,018  ;  12,  Bucaramanga, 
10,008  ;  next  comes  Cartagena,  9896.  Tamalameque,  which 
is  found  on  all  good  maps,  contains  a  population  of  726,  scat- 
tered over  the  whole  district. 

I  know  of  no  place  of  the  size  of  Palmira  that  excels  it  in  the 
population  of  its  jail.  To  this  bad  pre-eminence  I  think  the  ad- 
ministration of  Lopez  brought  it  by  giving  it  wicked  rulers ;  but 
of  that  we  shall  see  more  presently.  The  jail  is  miserably  in- 
secure. It  is  of  unburnt  brick,  and  the  windows  open  on  the 
street. 

The  only  public  institution  which  I  visited  besides  was  the 
boys'  school.  I  was  then  making  my  investigations  on  the 
amousnt  of  arithmetic  learned  in  the  common  schools.  Here  I 
proposed  this  sum :  A  boy  bought  a  cage  for  12  cuartillos,  paid 
5  for  having  it  mended,  and  sold  it  for  19 :  how  much  did  he 

*  Valle,  Valle  de  Jesus,  or  Jesus-Maria,  is  a  town  in  the  canton  of  Velez  (the 
most  populous  in  New  Granada),  some  20  miles  southwest  of  the  town  of  Velez. 
It  is  of  no  importance  except  as  the  centre  of  a  dense  population,  chiefly  of  In- 
dians. It  has  no  post-office,  and  scarcely  has  a  name  of  its  own. 

KK 


514  NEW   GRANADA. 

gain  or  lose  ?  It  was  given  to  the  best  boy  in  a  large  school, 
but  he  could  not  do  it. 

My  host  here,  Doctor  Z.,  was  a  lawyer  who  had  turned  mer- 
chant, as  is  quite  common.  I  saw  another  LL.D.  here  sell  a 
string  of  glass  beads  to  a  mulata  to  put  on  her  babe.  Dr.  Z. 
has  little  reverence  for  the  priests.  He  told  me  a  tough  story 
of  one  of  them.  He  was  a  negligent  priest,  who  was  called  sud- 
denly to  administer  the  last  sacraments  to  two  dying  persons. 
At  the  bedside  of  the  first  he  opened  his  wafer-box,  and  behold! 
an  intruding  cockroach  had  eaten  all  but  the  least  particle  of  the 
hostia.  According  to  the  doctors,  all  consecrated  wafers  must 
be  eaten  by  a  Christian.  What  the  cockroach  had  swallowed 
must  be  no  exception.  He  judged  the  moribund  to  be  so  far 
gone  as  to  be  unconscious,  and  so,  taking  the  prisoner  in  his  fin- 
gers, he  asked,  "Have  you  faith  to  believe  that  what  I  now  pre- 
sent to  you  is  the  body  of  God  ?"  "  The  body  of  God !"  cries 
the  poor  fellow,  opening  wide  his  glazing  eyes ;  "  it  is  a  cock- 
roach!" 

I  was  invited  to  dine  with  a  family  here.  It  was  a  Friday  in 
Lent,  and  I  had  to  do  without  meat.  This  is  the  only  instance 
in  all  my  Granadan  experience  where  the  lady  would  not  allow 
any  meat  on  her  table.  I  have  seen  one  lady  and  one  child  fast, 
but  no  more,  except  this  family.  The  priests  are  supposed  to 
fast. 

The  space  is  very  broad  here  between  the  foot  of  the  hills  and 
the  river.  Below,  large  estates  extended  from  the  river  to  the 
mountains,  or  to  the  edge  of  occupied  land.  Here,  above,  fenced 
fields  are  much  more  common,  and  there  may  be  several  farms, 
one  east  of  the  other;  but,  generally,  the  river-forest  here  is  much 
wider  than  below ;  in  some  cases  nearly  10  miles  wide.  On 
leaving  Palmira  we  turn  almost  due  west.  Our  southward 
journey  in  this  volume  is  virtually  at  an  end. 

Between  here  and  the  river  lies  some  of  the  worst  road  in  the 
world  on  account  of  mud.  The  distance  between  Palmira  and 
Cali  is  given  as  18  or  19  miles,  but  it  is  as  far  as  a  horse  ought 
to  travel  in  a  day.  At  one  place  we  had  to  unsaddle  our  horses 
and  walk  across  a  slough  on  logs,  holding  them  by  the  halter 
lest  they  drown.  Its  desperate  character  might  at  once  be 
known  by  seeing  Pontederia  azurea  growing  there. 


CALL  515 

Then  came  a  palm  forest  of  a  thousand  acres.  Our  course 
would  lay  around  the  fallen  stems  with  a  monotonous  plash  of 
horses'  hoofs.  I  saw  here  some  cacao-trees  which  I  was  assured 
were  indigenous.  I  so  believe  them,  for  I  think  no  mortal  would 
live  here  to  cultivate  them. 

Good  news !  we  are  at  the  ferry  at  last !  Our  saddles  are  in 
the  boat,  we  hold  our  horses  by  the  bridle,  and  set  loose  from 
the  shore.  A  few  rods  diagonal  paddling  of  man  and  beast, 
and  we  scramble  up  the  west  bank  of  the  Cauca.  We  have  left 
the  province  of  Cauca  for  that  of  Buenaventura. 


CHAPTER  XXXIII. 

CALI  AND  VIJES. 

Cali. — Church  built  of  old  Clothes. — A  Priest  making  Jews. — Rare  Flower  and 
miraculous  Image. — North  American  in  the  Hospital. — Schools. — Weaving. 
— Sounds  familiar. — Funeral. — Celebration  of  a  Party  Triumph. — Election  of 
Lopez. — A  Turn  northward. — A  fine  Bridge. — Yumbo. — Copper  cheaper  than 
Iron. — San  Marcos. — Route  to  the  Pacific. — Copper  Mine. — Gold  Mining  and 
Washing. — Comb  Manufactory. — Maladministration  in  the  Cauca. — Lands  in 
common. — Our  Priest :  his  Eloquence  and  Morals. — Visit  to  a  Hermit. — He- 
roic Eating. — Espinal. — Bolivia. — Pretty  Child. — Locating  Road. — Fence  of 
Cornstalks. — Railroad  to  the  Pacific. — Defective  Government. — Constitution 
of  1853. — Finances. — Protection  of  Vagabonds. — The  Granadinos  are  a  moral 
People. 

WE  are  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Cauca,  and  about  4  miles  east 
of  Cali.  For  some  distance  the  land  is  liable  to  be  overflowed, 
but  at  length  we  come  to  soil  that  is  capable  of  cultivation. 
There  are  one  or  two  haciendas  near  the  road.  At  length  we 
see  before  us  an  immense  compact  grove,  with  palms  rising  here 
and  there  above  the  rest  of  the  foliage,  and,  above  all,  some 
steeples,  and  the  bodies  of  two  churches,  one  of  them  crowned 
with  a  fine  dome.  That  grove  covers  Cali. 

A  nearer  view  does  not  belie  the  pleasing  prospect  at  a  dis- 
tance. It  stands  on  the  right  bank  of  Cali  Eiver,  on  dry,  open 
ground,  half  a  mile  perhaps  from  the  foot  of  the  western  or  Cal- 
das  chain  of  the  Andes.  It  may  be  regarded  as  the  sea-port  of 
the  Cauca  Valley.  It  is  the  capital  of  the  province  of  Buena- 


516  NEW  GRANADA. 

ventura,  and,  while  that  port  has  but  1986  inhabitants,  Cali,  the 
fifth  town  in  New  Granada,  has  11,848.  It  is  one  of  those  old 
towns  that  I  love  to  meet  with,  where  most  of  the  architecture 
is  solid,  and  few  indeed  of  the  roofs  are  thatched.  It  has  a  suf- 
ficient supply  of  suppressed  convents  for  hospital,  colegio,  and 
other  public  uses,  and  one  still  in  operation,  a  Franciscan  con- 
vent of  monks,  besides  a  beateria,  or  place  for  the  special  devo- 
tions of  females. 

This  convent  of  San  Francisco  is  probably  the  richest  west 
of  the  Quindio.  Its  church  is  exceeded  in  size  only  by  the  Ca- 
thedral of  Bogota  and  the  church  at  Chiquinquira.  It  is  really 
the  finest  church  I  have  seen  here.  They  say  it  was  built  of 
old  clothes.  From  some  notion  of  the  people,  they  love  to  be 
buried  in  the  robes  of  a  Franciscan  friar.  An  old  robe  is  pre- 
ferred to  a  new  one,  and  some  say  the  older  the  better;  so  a 
friar  can  not  afford  to  keep  his  clothes  till  they  get  shabby.  A 
man  not  acquainted  with  this  custom  became  alarmed  once  for 
the  extinction  of  the  order.  Every  day  or  two  he  met  a  Fran- 
ciscan going  to  his  last  home.  On  discovering  his  mistake,  he 
wondered  if  the  devil  could  be  cheated  as  he  was. 

At  a  high  mass  here  I  was  surprised  by  hearing  a  priest  that 
could  really  sing ;  it  was  a  great  treat.  I  was  so  much  inter- 
ested in  him  that  I  sought  an  introduction  to  him,  and  called 
on  him.  He  proved  to  be  an  Italian.  He  had  refrained  from 
making  music  a  special  study,  he  assured  me,  because  he  was 
desirous  of  preaching,  and  if  he  became  a  chorister  it  would  in- 
terfere with  his  bent.  I  never  heard  him  preach,  but  urged  that 
he  could  not  render  a  better  service  to  religion  than  by  render- 
ing the  musical  parts  of  it  endurable.  He  told  me  he  was  also 
engaged  in  image-making,  and  showed  me  some  Jews  that  he 
was  making  for  the  processions  of  Holy  Week.  I  told  him  that 
I  thought  a  priest's  time  better  spent  in  making  Christians  out 
of  pagans  than  making  Jews  out  of  gypsum.  He  asked  me  to 
dine  with  him,  but  I  deferred  it  till  another  occasion.  When  I 
next  visited  Cali  he  had  moved  to  another  convent. 

San  Pedro  is  a  parish  church  of  Cali,  but  is  not  equal,  in  ei- 
ther size  or  splendor,  to  San  Francisco.  It  glories  in  a  suite  of 
large,  new  pictures,  apparently  all  by  the  hand  of  the  same  art- 
ist, and  a  very  industrious  one.  I  am  wicked  enough  to  like 


FLOWER  AND  IMAGE  OF  QUEBEMK  '  517 

new  paintings,  and,  though  this  artist  will  never  equal  Vasquez, 
I  looked  them  over  with  great  satisfaction. 

They  had  a  great  procession  here,  in  which  some  image  of 
the  Virgin  went  from  her  home  through  a  large  number  of  the 
streets  and  back  home  again.  Great  preparations  were  made 
at  some  of  the  places  it  was  to  pass,  to  ornament  the  houses  by 
hanging  out  calico,  and  whatever  they  thought  ornamental.  Af- 
ter the  procession  was  over  I  was  permitted  to  see  Our  Lady  of 
the  Queremal.  .  Quereme  is  the  name  of  a  fragrant  flower  that 
is  not  known  to  grow  in  but  one  place  in  the  world,  and  that  is 
west  of  Cali.  It  is  the  Thibaudia  Quereme,  and  the  place 
where  it  grows  is  the  Queremal.  It  is  sold  in  the  market  of 
Cali  whenever  it  is  in  flower.  Well,  in  that  famous  place  was 
found  an  image,  all  carved  out  of  stone  by  supernatural  means. 
This  was  brought  to  Cali,  as  if  there  had  been  an  error  in  its 
first  collocation.  It  has  been  covered  with  paint  and  clothes, 
and  set  up  in  a  camarin  to  be  worshiped.  I  went  up  into  the 
camarin  and  examined  it. 

Farther  south,  on  the  very  borders  of  Equador,  is  an  image 
supernaturally  painted  on  a  perpendicular  ledge  of  rock.  With 
immense  labor,  the  art  of  man  has  been  able  to  construct  a  chap- 
el to  protect  it  and  adore  it  in.  None  of  these,  however,  can 
near  approach  in  fame  the  oldest  of  these  cheats,  the  old  daub 
of  Chiquinquira. 

I  learned  that  there  was  a  North  American  in  the  hospital 
here,  so  I  felt  I  must  call  upon  him.  He  was  a  negro  from 
Boston.  The  nature  of  his  affliction  did  not  greatly  prejudice 
me  in  his  favor.  I  found  his  situation  very  comfortable  there ; 
as  good,  in  fact,  as  in  most  of  our  hospitals  at  the  North.  The 
hospital  is  spacious  and  well  conducted.  I  found  he  needed 
nothing  but  some  aid  in  finding  employment  after  his  discharge. 

I  visited  the  colegio.  It  was,  perhaps,  my  most  profitable 
visit  to  a  school.  I  introduced  myself  to  the  sub-director,  who 
seemed  anxious  to  enlighten  me  in  their  modes  of  teaching.  I 
was  curious  to  hear  his  boys  conjugate  a  Latin  verb.  Our 
faulty  way  is  to  accentuate  the  termination  in  all  cases.  Most 
teachers  consider  it  inevitable.  So  our  boys  say,  Amabamm, 
amabass,  amabatt.  Here  they  said  amabam,  amabas,  amabat. 
But  the  most  intolerable  curse  of  our  Latin  schools  is  the  stu- 


518  NEW  GRANADA. 

pidity  of  teaching  a  false  pronunciation  that  makes  a  man  a  bar- 
barian wherever  English  is  not  spoken ;  that  is  where  he  needs 
Latin  most.  Fortunately  for  me,  I  had  for  years  used  the  Con- 
tinental pronunciation  which  is  laid  down  in  the  best  of  our 
systems  of  teaching  Latin,  Bullions'. 

From  Latin  I  set  them  to  parsing  Spanish,  and  got  them  on 
that  untranslatable  phrase,  Que  tal  le  ha  ido  a  usted  (what  so 
to  him  has  it  gone  to  your  majesty),  which  means  how  have 
you  been.  The  boy  was  puzzled ;  the  sub-director  was  helping 
him  out,  when  the  director  entered.  Then  sprung  up  an  earnest 
debate  between  the  two.  The  sub-director  supposed  an  ellipsis 
of  several  words — less  than  twenty,  I  think.  The  director  main- 
tained that  the  phrase  was  no  more  capable  of  analysis  and  the 
application  of  syntax  to  its  components  than  a  compound  in- 
terjection. I  withheld  my  opinion  through  pretended  modesty, 
in  reality  because  it  agreed  with  that  of  the  inferior.  Most  of 
my  readers  will  be  likely  to  adhere  to  the  director's  notion  that 
it  is  unparsable,  and  so  we  will  leave  it. 

My  chief  objection  to  the  system  of  education  in  this  colegio 
is,  that  it  is  too  speculative,  and  undervalues  practical  knowl- 
edge, as  geography  and  chemistry ;  and  too  ambitious,  having 
too  much  of  calculus,  and  too  little  of  arithmetic.  Every  thing 
is  attempted,  and,  therefore,  little  is  mastered. 

I  visited  the  primary  girls'  school.  It  occupied  the  whole  of 
a  casa  claustrada — a  quite  needless  amount  of  space.  It  was 
a  well-ordered  school.  I  set  myself  to  guess  the  proportion  of 
African  and  European  blood  in  the  school,  and  think  it  was 
about  one  third  African,  with  no  visible  intermixture  of  Indian. 
They  sang,  but  only  as  a  devotional  exercise.  They  had  a  lit- 
tle printed  collection  of  hymns.  No  two  hymns  could  be  sung 
to  the  same  tune :  long  metre,  common,  and  short,  are  unknown 
here.  This  would  be  an  inconvenience  in  attempting  to  intro- 
duce the  necessary  Protestant  hymns,  and  of  theirs  there  is 
none  that  the  Protestant  could  use  except  the  Trisagio,  or  hymn 
to  the  Trinity,  which  is  not,  after  all,  worth  much  either  as  to 
words  or  music.  I  expressed  a  wish  to  obtain  their  hymn- 
book,  which  they  assured  me  I  could  do  at  the  gobernacion. 
"We  have  enough  to  spare  here,"  added  the  directora  ;  "but, 
as  they  are  receipted  for,  it  is  impossible  for  us  to  give  away  or 


SIGHTS  AND   SOUNDS  IN  CALL  519 

lose  one  without  being  held  accountable."  When  a  teacher  re- 
signs, a  clerk  of  the  gobernador  comes,  counts  all  the  property 
of  the  school,  and  gives  it  over  to  the  successor,  taking  a  re- 
ceipt. 

I  saw  a  loom  in  Cali.  It  is  the  only  one  I  have  seen.  A 
rude  affair  it  was,  far  inferior  to  any  of  our  old  hand-lpoms. 
There  are  no  arts  that  need  introducing  here  more  than  spin- 
ning and  weaving.  Spinning  must  precede  weaving,  which  can 
not  flourish  while  spinning  is  done  in  the  antique  mode,  and  spin- 
ning-wheels are  unknown.  Had  half  the  expense  spent  in  intro- 
ducing factory  machinery  into  New  Granada  been  spent  on  do- 
mestic machinery,  a  new  era  would  have  dawned  here.  Neither 
spinning  nor  weaving  have  been  introduced  into  New  Granada 
by  Europeans,  though  possibly  this  loom  may  have  been  pat- 
terned after  those  of  Spain.  The  manta,  or  native  cotton  cloth, 
made  from  an  indigenous  shrub,  was  one  of  the  riches  of  the  ab- 
origines before  the  conquest,  and  the  mode  of  spinning  can  not 
have  improved  any  since  that  day. 

I  am  sorry  to  say  that  I  heard  one  sound  in  Cali  that  re- 
minded me  of  home.  I  am  ashamed  to  tell  what  it  was,  but  as 
a  faithful,  conscientious  traveler  I  have  no  alternative.  It  was 
a  man  quarreling  with  (I  suppose)  his  wife.  For  how  many 
months  has  this  been  an  unknown  sound  to  my  ears !  I  heard 
two  women  quarreling  in  Bogota,  and  came  near  seeing  a  quar- 
rel of  two  bogas  on  the  Magdalena ;  but  these  men  are  of  a  de- 
graded race  and  mixed  blood,  ignorant  and  half  civilized,  wear 
machetes  to  cut  bushes,  and  not  a  bowie-knife  to  fight  with, 
and  do  not  even  whip  their  wives. 

There  is  a  hospital  for  lepers  here.  I  was  anxious  to  visit 
it,  but  my  friends  protested ;  so  much  would  they  dread  the  in- 
troduction of  elephantiasis  into  their  families,  to  gratify  my  curi- 
osity. I  can  not  think  the  disease  so  contagious  as  they  im- 
agine, for  I  do  not  hear  of  those  who  live  with  lepers  contract- 
ing it. 

I  attended  the  funeral  of  a  General  Borrero — not,  as  I  then 
supposed,  the  candidate  for  President  in  1847.  He  was  a  mem- 
ber of  La  Tercera,  the  third  order  of  St.  Francis,  and  according- 
ly was  buried  as  a  monk.  "  When  the  devil  was  sick,  the  devil 
a  monk  would  be."  His  body  lay,  the  night  before  the  funeral, 


520  N£W  GRANADA. 

in  a  chapel  of  the  convent.  The  next  day  they  sung  the  mass 
of  the  defunct,  with  the  accompaniment  of  the  best  musicians 
and  vocalists  that  could  be  hired  in  Cali. 

Then  marched  forth  a  long  procession  through  the  streets, 
with  hats  off,  and  candles  thirty  inches  long  and  two  in  diam- 
eter, dropping  wax  in  the  street.  They  went  to  a  small  church, 
or  chapel,  at  the  northern  extremity  of  Cali,  adjoining  the  old 
cemetery.  Here  some  farther  singing  and  praying  was  perform- 
ed, and  the  procession  proceeded  eastward,  out  of  town  and  over 
the  plain,  to  the  new  cemetery,  where  as  yet  no  chapel  has  been 
built.  I  did  not  enter  the  cemetery  with  the  procession,  nor 
see  the  body  deposited  in  its  last  resting-place,  owing  to  a  little 
accident  in  leaping  one  of  the  stagnant  brooks  that  cut  the  plain 
in  every  direction ;  I  had  landed  in  a  soft  spot,  and  covered  my- 
self with  rich  black  mud  nearly  up  to  my  knees.  When  I  had 
got  it  washed  off,  and  had  entered  the  cemetery,  the  body  was 
already  placed  in  a  brick  boveda,  or  oven,  about  three  feet  high, 
and  they  were  building  up  the  mouth.  Burnt  bricks  are  al- 
ways used  for  this  work. 

One  other  great  affair  came  off  here,  the  celebration  of  the 
triumph  of  the  Liberates,  on  7th  March,  1849,  when  President 
Lopez  was  elected  president.  The  affair  was  official,  and,  frank- 
ly to  speak  my  sentiments,  therefore  in  bad  taste.  Especially 
it  was  adding  insult  to  injury  to  require  the  Franciscan  monks 
s/to  celebrate  an  event  that  grieved  the  heart  of  every  fanatic. 

The  celebration  began,  of  course,  with  the  vesper  of  the  day, 
on  Sunday  night;  this  was  by  an  illumination.  As  there  is 
no  window-breaking  mob  here,  and  no  windows  to  be  broken, 
the  affair  suffered  in  brilliancy  accordingly.  In  the  Plaza  there 
were  but  thirty-one  lights,  and  most  of  these  were  in  the  bal- 
conies of  government  offices. 

On  Monday  there  was  a  grand  mass  in  San  Francisco.  Ar- 
tillery and  infantry  were  drawn  up  in  front  of  the  church.  At 
the  proper  time,  when  all  the  bells  rang,  the  drums  also  beat, 
and  the  rattle  of  musketry  and  the  thunder  of  cannon  added 
wings  to  the  devotion  of  the  dense  crowd  that  filled  the  vast  and 
beautiful  church.  Soldiers  on  parade  do  not  kneel  or  remove 
caps  at  mass. 

From  my  Conservador  friend,  Don  Eladio  Vargas,  and  the 


ELECTION  OF  LOPEZ.  521 

amiable  botanist,  Senor  Jose  Maria  Triana,  of  the  Comision  Co- 
regrafica,  whom  I  unexpectedly  met  here  together,  I  had  most 
of  my  information  about  that  memorable  day. 

"The  day  they  celebrate,"  says  Don  Eladio,  "was  one  of 
the  saddest  in  the  annals  of  New  Granada,  not  more  in  its  con- 
sequences than  in  itself.  It  was  the  triumph  of  the  poniards  of 
a  Bogota  mob  over  the  representatives  of  the  people.  They 
were  besieged  in  the  Church  of  Santo  Domingo,  where  the  ses- 
sion was  held,  and  elected  Lopez  only  to  escape  assassination." 

"  What  assassination  nor  what  squashes  (calabazas)  ?"  says 
Pepe  Triana.  "Who  but  your  idol  Mosquera  had  the  command 
of  the  military  in  Bogota  at  the  time  ?  I  myself  was  one  of 
that  mob,  as  you  call  us.  I  know  not  one  of  us  that  was  armed. 
The  only  arms  I  saw  there  were  a  pair  of  pistols,  which  were 
handed  to  Dr.  Ospina,  Mosquera's  evil  genius ;  nor  do  I  know 
of  others,  except  that  two  Conservador  representatives,  Neira 
and  Pardo  the  pious,  intimated  that  they  were  prepared  to  sell 
their  lives  as  dearly  as  possible.  And  I  know  that  the  military 
preparations  were  complete.  The  night  before,  the  cannon  were 
loaded  with  grape.  All  the  horses  of  the  cavalry  had  their  sad- 
dles on  all  night,  and,  at  the  time,  all  the  troops  were  drawn  up 
at  the  barracks  with  guns  loaded  with  ball.  Lines  of  trumpet- 
ers, disguised  in  citizens'  dress,  extended  from  Santo  Domingo 
to  all  the  barracks.  Within,  of  course,  the  trumpeter  that  al- 
ways attends  the  sessions  of  Congress  was  present  in  his  uni- 
form. What  danger  could  threaten  Congress  with  these  prep- 
arations ?" 

V.  "  I  do  not  deny  your  account  of  the  preparations :  it  was 
the  President's  duty  to  make  them.  But  you  dare  not  deny 
that  Congress  was  threatened.  This  I  will  prove  beyond  con- 
tradiction from  the  *  Apuntamientos'  of  Samper.  First  he  says 
that  '  because  Lopez  had  more  votes  in  the  popular  election  than 
Cuervo  and  Gori  together,  the  democratic  party  rightly  consid- 
ered that  this  circumstance  authorized  them  to  demand  his  elec- 
tion— lo  autorizaba  para  exijirla  /'  page  444.  Next,  page  446, 
'  At  each  ballot  which  contained  the  name  of  General  Lopez, 
there  arose  in  the  auditory  an  exclamation  of  joy  and  enthusi- 
asm like  the  strophe  of  a  triumphal  hymn  :  a  vague  and  sudden 
murmur,  which  expressed  disgust,  was  the  echo  to  the  name  of 


522  NEW  GRANADA. 

Dr.  Cuervo.'  And  again,  '  When,  at  the  third  ballot,  the  choice 
was  limited  to  two  candidates,  and  Cuervo  had  43  votes,  Lopez 
41,  and  the  rest  were  blank,  some  of  the  barra  thought  Cuervo 
was  elected,  and  a  prolonged  murmur,  like  the  distant  roar  of 
the  tempest,  resounded  under  the  dome  of  the  temple.'  Those 
blank  votes  are  said  to  have  been  cast  by  way  of  experiment,  to 
see  whether  they  could  elect  Cuervo  and  be  safe." 

T.  "  Still  there  was  no  mob  and  no  menace,  for  then  Con- 
gress ordered  the  church  to  be  cleared.  All  went  out  quietly 
into  the  bitter  cold  rain,  and  waited  in  the  open  street  while  the 
last  decisive  ballot  was  taken.  And  that  infamous  vote  of  Ma- 
riano Ospina  '  for  Jose  Hilario  Lopez,  in  order  that  Congress  be 
not  assassinated,'  was  the  beginning  of  the  calumny  that  you 
are  now  trying  to  keep  alive." 

Now  what  can  an  impartial  traveler  make  out  of  a  discussion 
like  this  ?  My  conclusion  is  that  the  will  of  the  nation  was  ex- 
ecuted in  the  election  of  Lopez ;  that  Congress  was  not  free  in 
the  election,  and  that  there  was  danger  in  resisting  the  will  of 
the  populace ;  that  they  yielded  to  it  partly  through  cowardice, 
and  partly  because  their  conscience  convicted  them  of  the  wrong 
they  wished  to  do  in  defeating  the  will  of  the  nation ;  and,  last- 
ly, that  the  pressure  exerted  upon  them  amounted  only  to  im- 
plied threats,  which  probably  never  would  have  been  executed. 
And  I  think  that  Samper  throws  some  light  on  this  question  in 
his  remarks  on  the  election  of  Joaquin  Mosquera  in  1830,  when 
the  "  youth  of  Bogota  succeeded  in  inspiring  the  Convention 
with  confidence."  This  draws  one  to  the  conclusion  that  the 
elections  are  not  always  free.  The  conduct  of  President  Mos- 
quera was  admirable  through  the  whole  of  it,  and  especially 
when,  at  the  close,  he  promptly  went  to  the  residence  of  Lopez 
to  congratulate  him  on  his  election.  o:i  >i! 

An  accidental  circumstance  led  me  to  call  on  Dr.  Manuel 
Maria  Mollarino.  I  supposed  him  at  the  time  to  be  an  M.D., 
but,  judging  from  his  library,  I  infer  that  he  is  (as  are  most  of  the 
doctors  here)  an  LL.D.  I  little  foresaw  then  that  the  supreme 
power  was  so  soon  to  be  placed  in  his  hands  as  Vice-president. 
He  is  an  intelligent  gentleman,  and  speaks  very  good  English ; 
better,  I  think,  than  any  one  I  have  met  who  has  not  resided  in 
an  English  country,  or,  as  Vice-president  Obaldia,  on  the  Isth- 


THE  TURNING-POINT.  523 

mus.  He  is  a  Conservador,  but  not  of  an  ultra  stamp,  and, 
had  he  any  power  in  his  hands,  would  use  it  well ;  but  the  Pres- 
ident is  too  much  like  a  head  clerk  to  sign  papers. 

There  are  some  fine  walks  about  Cali,  but  none  better  than 
up  to  the  Church  of  SanJNicolas,  on  a  high  knoll  that  overlooks 
the  whole  city.  Leaving  this  on  my  left,  and  descending  to- 
ward the  river,  I  followed  up  its  right  bank.  I  passed  the  aque- 
duct which  supplies  Cali  with  water  at  a  place  where  it  was 
carried  over  a  hollow.  I  was  surprised  that  it  was  not  larger, 
although  I  believe  it  is  larger  than  any  in  Bogota  ;  its  external 
dimensions  are  only  about  thirty  inches  square.  Farther  up  it 
is  an  open  acequia.  I  could  not  believe  my  eyes  here,  for  it 
seemed  that  the  acequia  descended  toward  the  river,  while  the 
water  was  flowing  in  it  quite  rapidly  from  the  river.  I  had  to 
stop  and  examine  before  I  could  convince  myself  of  the  optical 
illusion. 

Farther  up,  I  ended  my  southward  progress  where  the  road 
to  Buenaventura  crosses  the  river.  An  immense  pile  of  bales 
of  tobacco,  incased  in  hide,  were  here  waiting  either  for  the  mules 
to  rest  or  for  others  to  be  hired.  I  am  now  in  latitude  3°  25' 
north,  and  perhaps  nearer  the  equator  than  I  shall  ever  be  again. 
But  no  differences  of  latitude  are  felt  here.  Like  the  length  of 
days  near  the  solstice,  where  a  week  makes  not  so  much  varia- 
tion as  a  single  day  at  the  equinoxes,  the  seven  degrees  I  have 
traversed  in  these  pages  make  but  an  imperceptible  difference, 
while  that  of  the  two  degrees  between  New  York  and  Boston  is 
very  considerable. 

There  are  interesting  coal  mines  and  beds  of  lignite  near  Cali 
that  deserve  the  attention  of  the  traveler,  and  some  things  here 
that  might  richly  reward  the  mineralogist,  but  I  did  not  learn  of 
them  in  season  to  visit  them. 

I  left  Cali  in  company  with  Senor  Triana  and  Senor  Mon- 
zon,  director  of  some  mining  operations  which  we  wished  to  visit 
at  Vijes.  We  crossed  the  Cali  over  a  brick  bridge,  the  longest 
and  best  bridge,  as  well  as  the  last,  that  I  have  seen  in  all  New 
Granada.  It  is  wide  enough  for  a  carriage  to  pass,  and  con- 
sists of  seven  arches.  You  would  forget  where  you  are  while 
looking  at  the  bridge ;  but  look  above  at  the  washerwomen  that 
line  the  bank,  or  the  swimming  boys  and  swimming  girls  below, 
and  you  will  see  that  you  are  in  New  Granada  yet. 


524  NEW  GRANADA. 

Another  stream  is  to  be  passed,  and  you  are  fairly  on  the  way. 
I  saw  on  a  shed  or  hut  as  I  left  a  singular  roof  of  guadua.  It 
was  made  of  stems  split  in  two.  One  set  was  placed  like  open 
troughs,  side  by  side,  running  straight  down  from  the  ridge-pole 
to  the  eaves.  Over  the  adjacent  edges  of  these  were  reversed 
an  equal  number  of  others,  that  prevented  the  rain  from  getting 
in  between  them. 

Under  a  large  tree  by  the  wayside  we  found  a  man  resting, 
who  begged  of  us.  He  gave  as  a  reason  for  giving  him  alms 
that  he  was  a  convict  recently  liberated  from  presidio.  Farther 
on,  as  we  were  going  south,  on  our  left  hand,  Senor  Monzon 
showed  us  a  natural  picture,  an  Ecce  Homo.  Like  the  Old  Man 
of  the  Mountain,  in  the  White  Hills  of  New  Hampshire,  the  re- 
semblance appears  in  but  one  point ;  but,  unlike  that,  it  requires 
considerable  imagination  to  see  it  at  all :  I  utterly  failed. 

Here  we  come  to  the  most  terrible  quagmire  that  I  have  ever 
seen  out  of  the  Quindio,  except,  perhaps,  on  some  of  the  roads 
to  the  bank  of  the  Cauca.  I  crossed  it  once  in  the  dark,  and, 
in  all  my  travels,  I  have  suffered  no  more  from  fear.  Deliver 
me  from  the  quagmires,  and  I  will  meet  cheerfully  the  preci- 
pices, fierce  bulls,  robbers,  and  serpents. 

I  stopped  that  night  at  the  Hacienda  of  Arroyo-hondo,  a  be- 
nighted stranger.  I  met  that  ready  hospitality  that  never  fails 
a  gentleman  in  any  house  or  cottage  in  a  land  where  negatives 
are  almost  unknown ;  "  in  the  sweet  land  of  67,"  as  one  calls  it. 
Here  I  saw  perhaps  the  oldest  cane-mill  that  goes  by  water- 
power  in  the  country.  The  rollers  were  of  copper,  brought  from 
the  south,  or  else  extracted  from  a  mine  near  Vijes.  They  are 
upright,  and  the  water-wheel  is  a  tub-wheel.  It  is  not  well  con- 
trived, and  never  before  have  I  found  copper  cheaper  than  iron. 

A  mile  or  two  to  our  left  is  the  town  of  Yumbo.  Still  farther 
north  is  a  hacienda  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain,  where  there  is  a 
lime-kiln.  The  only  other  in  the  Valley  of  the  Cauca  is,  as  I 
have  said,  at  Vijes,  a  little  farther  down.  A  curious  bird  here 
attracted  my  attention.  It  was  a  species  of  swallow,  a  variety 
of  Hirundo  rufa,  it  is  said,  that  has  two  long  tail-feathers  pro- 
jecting like  the  divergent  blades  of  a  pair  of  scissors,  hence  call- 
ed tijareta.  Another  of  the  wading  tribe  is  here  found,  always 
on  dry  ground,  picking  up  snails  or  other  helpless  animals  with 


CARRIAGE-ROAD  TO  THE  PACIFIC.  525 

its  long,  curved  bill.  From  its  cry  it  is  called  cocli,  and  is  sup- 
posed to  be  a  Scopus.  Another  bird,  looking  much  like  a  hawk, 
has  quite  similar  habits.  It  is  often  seen  perched  on  the  back 
of  a  cow,  particularly  if  she  be  lying  down.  It  is  supposed  to 
free  cattle  from  insects  that  infest  them,  and  is  therefore  called 
garropatero.  It  may  be  Crotophaga  Piririgua. 

The  hills,  and  therefore  the  road,  are  approaching  the  river. 
We  are  here  on  the  principal  road  from  Cali  to  Buga,  and  also 
to  Roldanillo  on  this  side,  till  here  the  two  roads  part,  and  the 
one  directs  itself  to  a  ferry,  and  the  other  to  a  spur  of  the  hill, 
over  which  it  climbs.  I  left  them  both  and  turned  to  a  hacien- 
da in  a  nook  of  the  hills,  called  San  Marcos.  Here  I  found  a 
pleasant  family,  and,  by  a  trip  up  a  small  stream,  gained  some 
interesting  information. 

I  went  up  about  three  miles.  I  rose  steadily,  but  not  rapid- 
ly. No  extraordinary  skill  wouldr  be  here  needed  to  make  a 
tolerable  wagon-road.  Here  I  found  solid  rock  every  where, 
which  much  reminded  me  of  the  mica-slate  regions  of  Vermont. 
Veins  of  quartz  were  abundant,  and  often  auriferous.  There 
were  some  small  waterfalls,  the  first  of  even  six  inches  that  I 
had  seen  in  the  Valley  of  the  Cauca.  At  length  I  came  to 
where  a  ridge  of  earth  seemed  to  stretch  across  the  valley.  I 
stood  on  it,  and  west  of  me  extended  the  Valley  of  the  Dagua, 
that  empties  into  the  Pacific  at  Buenaventura.  I  can  hardly 
believe  that  there  can  be  any  easier  way  for  a  wagon-road  from 
Bogota  to  the  Pacific  than  this.  The  port  is  almost  exactly 
west  of  where  I  stand,  and  it  can  not  be  twenty  miles  to  tide- 
water. 

Returning  to  San  Marcos,  they  gave  me  the  first  fruit  of  the 
pitajaya  that  I  ever  saw ;  I  mean  the  yellow  pitajaya,  for  the 
red  one  is  not  worth  eating.  The  true  Gereus  Pitajaya  of 
Jacquin  is  said  to  be  a  maritime  species,  with  the  fruit  scarlet 
without  and  white  within,  while  this  excellent  fruit  is  yellow, 
both  rind  and  pulp.  I  call  it  one  of  the  best  fruits  of  the  tropics. 
I  have  never  seen  the  expanded  flower  of  any  species  of  Cereus 
here.  They  open  at  night. 

Riding  under  a  tall  Capparidate  tree,  I  began  to  rise  a  rocky 
spur  of  the  Caldas  chain.  Soon  on  my  right  were  some  old 
diggings,  from  whence  is  said  to  have  come  all  the  copper  of  the 


526  NEW  GRANADA. 

bells  of  the  convent  of  San  Francisco  in  Cali.  In  a  few  rods 
of  it  are  more  recent  excavations  for  gold,  now  arrested,  I  am 
told,  by  a  lawsuit.  The  spur  reaches  down  to  the  very  river 
bank,  and  then  bends  down  the  river  as  if  to  meet  another  spur 
sent  off  a  few  miles  below.  Between  is  a  large  plain,  mostly 
shut  in  by  steep  hills,  which,  however,  do  not  prevent  it  from 
having  a  water-front  on  the  muddy  Cauca  of  a  mile  or  so. 
This  is  the  Plain  of  Vijes,  where  our  story  had  its  beginning, 
and  where  it  is  soon  to  reach  its  end. 

A  steep  descent  brought  me  to  the  small  village  of  mud  and 
thatch  where  Senores  Monzon  and  Triana  were  awaiting  me, 
and  also  dinner  at  the  hospitable  board  of  the  former.  Seiior 
Miguel  Caldas  lives  opposite,  in  far  the  best  house  in  town. 
He  has  had  a  comb  manufactory  here,  the  machinery  of  which 
he  has  just  sold  to  some  gentlemen  in  Cerrito,  opposite  here,  in 
the  eastern  Banda.  Combs  ought  to  be  a  profitable  manufac- 
ture where  horns  bear  only  a  nominal  price ;  but  no  factories 
can  flourish  here  till  there  are  more  necessities  and  fewer  holi- 
days. The  combs  were  carelessly  made,  and  the  utmost  a 
Caucan  establishment  can  aim  at  now  is  to  supply  the  local  de- 
mand, which  is  chiefly  for  side-combs,  and  perhaps  a  few  dress- 
ing-combs. They  are  by  no  means  so  important  an  ornament 
as  at  the  North. 

Minos  should  be  translated  deposits  rather  than  mines.  The 
works  of  Senor  Caicedo,  under  the  directions  of  Senor  Mon- 
zon, are  rather  explorations  than  mines.  There  are  two  veins 
opened  in  half  a  mile  of  the  Plaza,  and  a  mill  constructing  for 
grinding  and  amalgamation.  It  does  not  look  to  me  as  if  it 
would  work.  There  are  some  gold- washers  here — a  queer  race. 
They  have  a  chief  who  is  paid  for  doing  nothing  but  to  manage 
them  and  keep  them  at  work.  They  wash  in  an  ox-horn  flat- 
tened out.  It  requires  a  great  deal  of  skill  to  separate  micro- 
scopic particles  of  gold  from  the  heavy  ferruginous  sand,  and 
bring  it  to  sight,  when  it  is  said  pintarse — to  paint  itself. 
Their  operations  here  do  not  pay.  All  the  hope  of  Vijes  is  in 
the  quartz,  which,  I  should  judge,  might  be  valuable  when  prop- 
erly wrought. 

Senor  Caldas  is  a  highly  intelligent  man,  but  perhaps  the 
most  violent  Conservador  I  have  met  with  ;  and  not  without 


THE  PEREEEISTAS.  527 

reason.  At  the  last  election  he  was  accused  of  treason,  and  a 
gang,  I  might  say,  of  soldiers  were  sent  down  to  arrest  him, 
and  he  was  dragged  off  to  Cali.  The  only  reason  why  he  has 
not  committed  treason  was  for  the  want  of  any  chance  to  suc- 
ceed. The  idea  was  simply  absurd. 

I  have  reserved  till  now  the  mention  of  a  sight  that  met  my 
eyes  frequently  between  Buga  and  Palmira.  I  saw  many  fields 
that  had  once  been  fenced,  of  which  the  fence  was  destroyed.  I 
think  I  have  known  a  mile,  I  might  say  miles  together,  destroyed. 
They  tell  me  that  a  thousand  men  have  been  employed  in  this 
work  of  devastation  at  once.  I  applied  to  the  authorities  for  an 
explanation  of  the  matter,  but  for  a  long  time  received  none,  but 
then  received  too  much.  I  never  was  able  to  read  it  all. 

"No  man  can  dispute  or  explain  away,"  says  Senor  Caldas, 
"  the  chief  facts.  Your  own  eyes,  Senor,  have  seen  the  devas- 
tation of  once  flourishing  properties  ;  but  that  is  little.  The 
men  who  did  it  called  themselves  Perreristas.  Perrero  means 
a  dog-whip,  the  heaviest  whip  known  here,  with  handle  of  guay- 
acan  and  lash  of  raw-hide.  The  owners  of  these  fields  were 
whipped  with  them  whenever  they  caught  them.  Many  suf- 
fered this  ignominy.  Many  left  their  property  to  ruin,  and 
lived  in  the  large  towns  in  poverty  and  want,  and  not  even  then 
in  safety.  Houses,  too,  were  damaged,  as  the  Senor  has  also 
seen.  Women  were  violated.  And  all  this  was  done  by  the 
secret  orders  of  President  Lopez  and  his  more  infamous  success- 
or Obando." 

"  I  can  not  deny  the  crimes,"  replies  Triana ;  "  but  there  are 
extenuating  circumstances  that  you  do  not  mention ;  and  as  to 
their  origin,  I  can  not  agree  with  you  in  attributing  them  to  even 
the  gobernadores,  and  still  less  to  the  President.  There  has  al- 
ways been  a  ferocity  in  the  politics  on  this  side  of  the  Quindio. 
More  blood  has  been  shed  in  this  valley  than  in  all  the  rest  of 
the  republic.  Paste  has  always  been  an  active  or  dormant 
volcano.  The  property  of  this  central  part  of  the  valley  has 
been  all  in  the  hands  of  rich  holders  of  slaves  and  mines  in  the 
Choco.  They  have  had  no  sympathy  with  the  poor.  They 
have  been  the  owners  of  a  large  part  of  the  inhabitants  of  this 
valley  also,  till  the  law  made  them  loose  their  grasp  on  the  1st 
of  January,  1852." 


528  NEW   GRANADA. 

"  But  what  has  the  liberation  of  slaves  in  1852  to  do  with 
this  matter  of  1849  and  '50  ?" 

"  The  liberation,  little ;  the  anticipation  of  a  premature  liber- 
ation, much.  Even  in  Bogota,  never  had  there  been  such  po- 
litical fury  as  characterized  the  period  after  the  presidential  elec- 
tion of  1849,  when  the  excitement  ought  to  have  become  quiet. 
The  press,  the  pulpit,  and  the  Jesuits  were  all  busy.  School- 
boys formed  political  societies ;  young  ladies,  at  their  windows, 
frowned  on  gentlemen  whose  politics  they  did  not  like,  and  even 
women  of  mature  age  joined  in  societies  for  the  extermination 
of  democracy  as  an  enemy  to  religion.  Such  were  the  societies 
of  the  Boy-God — Nino  Dios.  All  this  was  before  the  Lopez 
administration  had  done  good  or  evil." 

"  Were  these  schoolboys  all  Conservadores  ?  Was  there  no 
Sociedad  Democratica,  no  Escuela  Republicana  ?" 

"There  must  be  defense  where  there  is  attack.  The  adminis- 
tration must  free  itself  of  its  most  dangerous  enemies,  the  Jesu- 
its, and  how  ?  Congress  was  in  session,  but,  before  any  law  rel- 
ative to  them  could  have  passed  both  houses,  even  had  the  Sen- 
ado  been  willing  to  support  the  administration,  their  machina- 
tions would  have  broken  out  into  a  rebellion  from  Cucuta  to 
Tuquerres ;  so,  while  the  '  Gaceta  Oficial'  was  preparing,  as 
usual,  the  daring  decree  in  the  '  Gaceta  Oficial  Extra'  of  18th 
May,  1851,  was  printed  elsewhere,  and  suddenly  the  whole  fra- 
ternity were  put  on  the  march  at  a  day's  warning,  and  with  no 
opportunity  to  spring  their  mine." 

"  But  what  has  all  this  to  do  with  the  Cauca  ?" 

"  Simply  that  here  Conservadores  and  oppressors  were  the 
same,  and  that  their  fury  prompted  to  deeds  that  provoked  the 
oppressed  beyond  endurance.  I  quote  Samper's  'Apuntami- 
entos,'  page  533:  'The  oligarchy  denied  to  the  commonalty 
the  unoccupied  land,  denied  them  wood,  and  the  fields  and  wa- 
ters that  they  could  use,  and  must  have  in  order  to  live.  They 
imprisoned  them  for  debt ;  they  insulted  them  with  a  contempt 
that  concealed  the  fear  they  had  of  them  ;  they  vilified  them  in 
speeches,  and  slandered  them  by  the  press  ;  they  denied  the  de- 
pendent man  his  rights,  whipped  and  martyrized  him  if  he  were 
slave,  despised  him  if  he  were  free,  oppressed  him  with  monop- 
olies, brutified  him  with  superstition,  and  charged  on  him  as  a 
crime  the  popular  victory  of  the  7th  of  March.' " 


MISGOVERNMENT  OF  THE  CAUCA.  529 

"  Gammon.  The  fact  was  that  the  land  and  many  of  the  in- 
habitants were  owned  by  the  rich,  but  the  lower  classes  had  full 
opportunities  to  buy  their  liberty  and  land.  They  did  not 
choose  to.  To  do  this  they  must  be  industrious  and  econom- 
ical, two  things  they  hated.  They  heard  that  it  was  preached 
in  Bogota  that  '  property  is  robbery ;'  and  here  is  the  explana- 
tion of  the  whole.  These  poor  people  were  instigated  to  carry 
out  this  new  gospel  and  bring  on  the  millennium  of  barbarism." 

"  And  Lopez  directed  these  outrages  ?" 

"  That  I  most  seriously  believe,  but  I  do  not  expect  to  con- 
vince you.  I  fully  believe  that  two  sets  of  directions  were  sent 
to  Cali  to  our  Gobernador  Mercado,  one  to  publish  and  another 
to  act  by :  one  to  suppress  outrage,  and  the  other  to  encourage 
it.  But  I  do  know,  and  you  can  not  deny,  that  Antonio  Mateus, 
then  jefe  politico  of  the  canton  de  Palmira,  and  at  this  accursed 
moment  Gobernador  of  Cauca — " 

"By  the  free  vote  of  a  majority  of  the  citizens  of  the  prov- 
ince." 

"Ay,  if  you  will  have  it  so.  Do  you  doubt  that  he  himself, 
while  jefe  politico,  headed  bands  of  perreristas  ?  Do  you  doubt 
that  he  stood  looking  on  while  twelve  of  his  bandits  in  suc- 
cession outraged  a  respectable  lady  in  open  day  in  the  Plaza  of 
Candelaria  ?" 

"  I  can  not  justify  any  wrong,  however  much  provoked,  nor 
am  I  going  to  say  that  I  think  Mateus  an  honest  man ;  but 
how  can  I  tell  what  to  believe  when  Conservador  malice  spares 
not  even  the  dead  ?  Have  you  seen  the  poetry  on  the  death  of 
Carlos  Gomez,  gobernador  of  Cauca  ?  While  his  poor  widow 
is  overwhelmed  with  her  affliction,  the  Conservadores  are  singing, 

" '  Earth  has  one  bandit  less, 
And  hell  one  devil  more.' " 

"  Well,  if  it  was  not  his  complicity,  it  was  at  least  his  inef- 
ficiency that  brought  all  this  ruin  on  so  many  haciendas,  and 
impoverished  the  provincia  he  was  sent  to  govern.  Samper 
himself  admits  as  much  while  defending  the  Lopez  administra- 
tion as  best  he  may.  He  says,  '  Governor  Mercado  has  been  to 
Governor  Gomez  as  Buenaventura  was  to  Cauca,  as  small  faults 
are  to  crime.'  And  when  the  mob  assassinated  Pinto  and  Mo- 
rales in  Cartago,  on  19th  June,  1851,  the  very  best  that  could 

LL 


530  NEW  GRANADA. 

be  said  of  the  gobernador  would  be  that  he  was  near  the  spot, 
and  took  no  part  either  in  killing  or  saving  them ;  and  the  ap- 
pointment of  Mateus  by  Obando  as  governor  of  Cauca,  even  had 
lie  been  innocent,  was  an  outrage,  since  so  many  regarded  him 
as  a  monster.  He  first  appointed  Wenceslao  Caravajal,  a  Lib- 
eral, it  is  true,  but  a  fair  man.  Did  the  Conservadores  oppose 
his  plans  ?" 
i  "No,  they  spoke  well  of  him." 

•"Well,  Senor  Holton,  did  not  you  witness  the  panic  tha. 
spread  over  the  province  when  he  was  superseded  by  Mateus  ?" 

"  I  must  say,"  I  replied,  "that  I  regretted  that  step  of  Oban- 
do's.  If  he  be  a  good  man,  even  the  heads  of  government  judge 
him  ill.  I  asked  a  member  of  the  cabinet  the  reason  of  this  ap- 
pointment, and  he  told  me  it  was  Obando's  own  act,  opposed 
strongly  by  all  the  cabinet,  but  persisted  in  with  such  earnest- 
ness because  Mateus  had  done  Obando  some  personal  service, 
that  finally  they  yielded  out  of  respect  to  the  President.  I  re- 
gard it  as  the  worst  act,  perhaps  the  only  bad  act  of  Obando's 
administration." 

"Now,  Senor  Norteamericano,"  continued  Caldas,  "I  have 
heard  you  speak  of  insurrection  as  in  all  cases  a  crime,  and  con- 
demn that  of  1851.  Had  you  been  here  then,  what  advice 
would  you  have  given  these  men  on  the  other  side  of  the  Cauca 
when  their  fences  were  destroyed,  their  wives  and  daughters  out- 
raged under  the  very  eyes  of  the  officers  of  the  law,  and  their 
backs  exposed  to  the  infamy  of  the  lash  ?  Would  you  advise 
patient  submission  or  rebellion?" 

"  It  was  a  hard  case,"  I  replied ;  "  and  I  never  felt  so  much 
like  justifying  Mosquera,  Herran,  and  Arboleda  as  at  this  mo- 
ment. But  did  insurrection  remedy  the  evil  ?" 

"No;  nor  do  I  know  of  any  remedy  but  to  migrate  to  a 
country  that  has  a  reliable  government.  Do  you  think  the 
United  States  could  be  prevailed  on  to  make  this  region  a  part 
of  their  territory  ?" 

"  Such  a  step  would  be  highly  inexpedient  for  us.  Now  we 
have  a  compact  territory,  so  that  when  once  the  Atlantic  and 
Pacific  are  united  by  railroad,  no  power  can  attack  any  part  of 
our  country  so  easily  as  we  could  defend  it.  But  add  to  our 
territory  the  Sandwich  Islands,  Panama,  or  Cuba,  or  this  val- 


LANDS  HELD  IN  COMMON.  531 

ley,  and  it  would  be  giving  bonds  to  other  nations  to  keep  the 
peace  with  them.  To  desire  it  would  be  as  if  a  man  wished  his 
nose  longer  than  his  arm,  so  that  his  assailant  could  pull  it 
when  too  far  off  to  be  struck  for  his  offense.  The  addition  of 
any  island  or  detached  territory  would  be  a  curse  to  us  which 
no  imaginary  advantages  would  repay." 

"  Then  I  see  but  one  remedy.  If  this  continue,  we  must  kill 
and  dry  beef  enough  for  the  journey,  kill  all  our  other  cows  for 
the  gallinazos,  and  all  the  horses  we  do  not  need  on  our  jour- 
ney, burn  all  our  houses,  and  leave  our  fields  to  the  Red  Repub- 
licans to  fight  over ;  for  with  such  a  government  no  man  of  prop- 
erty can  live." 

Now  I  honestly  believe  that  there  is  at  least  a  shadow  of  jus- 
tice in  his  views.  What  with  Samper's  theory,  and  that  "blind 
faith  in  principles"  that  he  admires  so,  and  with  the  utter  ab- 
sence of  all  desire  of  property  in  the  masses,  the  majority  is  the 
most  dangerous  tyrant  this  nation  can  have.  But  I  will  return 
to  this  subject  after  speaking  of  some  things  about  here. 

One  strange  peculiarity  of  Vijes  is  that  the  lands  here  are 
common  property.  Some  man  in  times  past  owned  all  this 
plain,  and,  of  the  hills  adjoining,  a  quantity  unknown  to  me : 
from  their  steepness  and  aridity  it  would  seem  the  less  the  bet- 
ter. When  he  died  it  fell  to  his  heirs  without  division.  Some 
may  have  sold  half  their  share,  and  in  this  way  there  are  more 
than  a  hundred  owners  of  this  property.  There  are  many  cases 
of  this  kind  in  New  Granada,  and  laws  to  regulate  the  improve- 
ment of  the  soil  and  other  questions  that  must  arise  under  this 
cumbrous  co-proprietorship.  It  will  be  a  very  difficult  thing  to 
bring  aLout  a  division.  At  present  no  one  wishes  it,  for  large 
parts  of  this  fertile  plain  are  yet  untilled,  and  there  are  consid- 
erable parts  of  it  which  I  have  not,  in  these  many  days,  explored 
either  on  horseback  or  afoot.  It  includes  one  or  two  detached 
hills  in  it.  All  the  rest  is  level  and  fertile. 

The  population  of  the  district  is  1160,  most  of  whom  live  in 
t  he  village,  and  nearly  all  of  them  near  it  on  the  plain. 

Once  in  the  memory  of  man  this  people  attempted  a  new 
church.  They  fairly  began  it  and  stopped.  The  Cura,  I  be- 
lieve, has  not  yet  given  up  all  hope  of  getting  them  at  work  on 
1 1  again,  but  I  see  little  prospect  of  it.  He  is  the  best  preacher 


532  NEW   GRANADA. 

I  have  heard  in  New  Granada,  where  preaching  is  so  rare,  and 
preaching  talent  still  rarer.  At  the  time  I  heard  him  he  was 
holding  a  protracted  meeting,  as  we  should  say,  that  is,  preach- 
ing every  evening  for  more  than  a  week,  preparatory  to  the 
separation  of  Church  and  State.  If  it  makes  every  priest  work 
as  hard  as  he  did,  the  new  arrangement  will  keep  them  from 
eating  so  much  of  the  bread  of  idleness. 

Perhaps  earlier  it  would  have  kept  him  from  other  evils  also, 
for  they  say  that  in  his  leisure  he  got  so  attached  to  a  damsel 
here  that  his  conduct  became  scandalous  for  even  a  priest. 
Finally,  the  authorities  went  to  the  parents  of  the  Curita,  as 
they  called  her,  coining  a  feminine  diminutive  from  cura,  and 
told  them  that  the  girl  could  have  employment  as  a  servant  in 
the  beateria  of  Cali,  and  if  she  would  not  take  up  with  that  she 
should  have  a  place  in  prison  as  a  vagabond.  So  much  care 
for  the  morals  of  a  priest  I  have  nowhere  else  seen,  nor  do  I  see 
the  use  in  it,  for  they  tell  me  that  it  would  be  necessary  to  send 
off  six  or  eight  girls  more  before  they  could  get  his  morals  up 
to  the  standard  of  decency.  I  ventured  to  joke  his  profession 
on  account  of  this  notorious  weakness.  He  did  not  deny  the 
impeachment,  but  only  replied,  "  Somos  hombres" — "  we  are 
men." 

Here  I  met  with  quite  a  familiar  tropical  plant  for  the  first 
time,  Curcus  purgans,  called  friar's  cathartic — purga  de  fraile. 
I  suspect  its  spread  over  the  globe  as  a  weed  has  been  aided  by 
its  convenience  as  a  purgative  without  any  other  forethought 
than  to  drop  a  seed  into  the  ground.  I  met  with  another  inter- 
esting natural  production  here.  I  believe  it  was  a  veritable 
equis,  perhaps  the  most  venomous  snake  we  have.  He  was 
nearly  three  feet  long,  and,  as  I  was  without  weapon  or  boots, 
I  let  him  alone.  I  think  there  can  be  little  danger  of  a  bite 
through  a  boot  even  of  the  thinnest  leather.  The  softness  of 
leather  would  be  worse  than  thinness,  as  I  think  two  thickness- 
es of  stiff  buckfam  would  be  almost  a  perfect  protection. 

There  is  a  hermit  living  in  the  hills  near  here.  He  is  said 
to  be  over  eighty,  though  he  is  quite  smart  and  active.  Old 
people  are  not  numerous  in  New  Granada.  I  have  seen  very' 
lew  indeed  ;  and  the  revered  class  of  genuine  hermits  I  thought 
had  died  out  in  past  centuries ;  but,  finding  so  much  of  past  cen- 


VISIT  TO  THE  HERMIT.  533 

turies  living  about  me,  I  resolved  to  see  the  "  venerable  man" 
with  my  own  eyes. 

In  the  simplicity  of  my  heart,  I  chose  the  sacred  hours  of  the 
Sabbath  for  this  pious  pilgrimage,  and  was  soon  following  up 
the  north  branch  of  the  brook  of  Vijes,  among  the  ledges  from 
which  it  comes.  How  far  I  went  I  can  not  say.  The  path  had 
become  a  little  dimmer,  but  showed  no  disposition  to  die  out  or 
bifurcate,  so  I  went  on.  Just  as  I  was  on  the  point  of  giving 
up,  I  saw  a  platanal,  put,  one  would  think,  at  the  upper  limit  of 
the  plantain.  Still  I  saw  no  house,  and  went  on  ;  upward,  if 
not  heavenward,  was  my  way,  till  I  turned  a  point  of  rock  and 
came  in  sight  of  the  hut. 

Three  furious  dogs  came  instantly  bounding  out  at  me.  I 
confess  I  was  surprised,  for  when  one  visits  a  hermit,  he  does 
not,  as  ever  I  heard,  go  armed  against  the  hermit's  dogs.  Next 
came  the  hermit's  boy  running  out  after  the  dogs,  and  calling  to 
them  to  come  back.  So  I  got  safe  to  the  house,  where  I  found 
not  only  the  hermit,  but  the  hermit's  woman  and  the  hermit's 
family.  I  must  say  that  in  all  this  my  feelings  underwent 
something  of  a  revulsion.  A  hermit  ought  to  live  in  a  cave,  or, 
if  there  be  none,  at  least  in  a  hut  constructed  of  the  leafy  boughs 
of  trees  ;  but  here  was  a  mud  cottage,  as  dirty  as  any  other,  and 
just  like  the  poorest  on  the  plain  below.  It  faced,  indeed,  a 
little  brook  that  ran  down  the  hill,  and  at  a  convenient  distance 
was  a  pretty  miniature  cascade,  a  rill  that  fell  into  it. 

I  looked  at  the  family,  counted  them,  and  estimated  the  mix- 
ture of  blood  in  their  veins.  There  was  a  daughter  and  two 
sons.  The  two  oldest  might  be  his,  but  the  younger  seemed  to 
have  met  with  some  accident  that  threw  a  greater  proportion  of 
African  blood  into  his  veins.  The  hermit's  woman  was  about 
forty,  half  his  own  age.  She  had  been  engaged  in  weaving  a 
ruana.  The  loom  was  a  square  frame,  of  the  width  and  half  the 
length  of  a  ruana,  say  three  feet  wide  and  two  feet  high.  Threads 
of  warp  had  been  wound  round  and  round  it,  as  on  a  reel,  the 
color  being  changed  so  as  to  produce  the  requisite  stripes.  The 
woof  had  been  simply  inserted  by  sheer  industry,  without  any 
apparatus  to  separate  the  threads  of  the  warp,  and,  of  course, 
without  a  proper  shuttle.  When  the  web  is  thus  completed, 
it  is  an  endless  piece,  and  if  sewed  up  at  one  side  would  make 


534  NEW  GRANADA. 

a  seamless  sack.  Instead  of  this,  it  is  cut  open,  and  an  open- 
ing cut  in  the  centre;  it  is  bound  at  the  "raw  edges,"  and  be- 
comes a  ruana. 

I  solicitously  assured  the  family  that  I  had  breakfasted,  had 
taken  chocolate,  that  I  needed  nothing  more.  All  would  not 
do.  Even  a  Granadino,  after  a  long  walk  like  this,  could  "  re- 
peat." The  chocolate  was  brought  me,  with  that  abominable 
cheese  already  crumbed  into  it  with  the  matron's  own  fingers. 
I  resolved  to  make  an  effort,  and  I  did.  One  thing  made  a 
greater  effort  necessary.  I  do  not  wish  to  make  a  hero  of  my- 
self in  swallowing  a  single  cup  of  cheese  and  chocolate,  but  I 
will  tell  you  just  how  it  was.  Right  in  front  of  the  cottage, 
where  I  sat  on  the  poyo  by  the  door  (for  I  did  not  go  in),  was  a 
pole  covered  with  strings  of  beef  that  had  just  begun  to  dry.  I 
asked  the  hermit  why  his  beef  looked  so  black,  and  particularly 
why,  at  this  altitude,  it  smelt  so  strong.  He  told  me  that  the 
cow  had  been  killed  by  falling  from  a  precipice.  The  darkness 
of  the  flesh,  he  assured  me,  was  in  consequence  of  the  blood  in 
it,  which  also  increased  the  tendency  to  putrefaction,  and  ag- 
gravated the  circumstance  of  his  not  having  found  the  animal 
immediately  after  the  accident.  So  I  fished  out  the  cheese  with 
my  spoon,  and  ate  it,  thankful  that  it  was  not  beef,  and  sipped 
my  chocolate,  asking  no  questions  for  conscience'  sake. 

The  old  man  had  been  a  lego,  layman,  or  servant  at  the  Fran- 
ciscan convent  at  Cali.  When  lime  was  wanting  to  build  their 
beautiful  church,  he  came  out  to  Vijes  and  burned  lime  for  them 
till  the  edifice  was  completed,  "In  consideration  of  which  serv- 
ices," says  a  document  he  showed  me,  already  some  twenty-five 
years  old,  "  he  shall  have  the  privilege  of  being  buried  as  a  Fran- 
ciscan monk  when  he  dies."  And  now  I  am  fully  resigned  that 
eremitism  die  with  him  from  off  the  face  of  the  earth  before  I 
see  any  thing  more  of  it. 

I  made  a  much  more  pleasant  excursion  to  Espinal  in  the 
next  nook  below  Vijes.  About  a  mile  from  the  town  I  began 
to  climb  the  spur  that  bounds  this  plain  on  the  north.  I  had 
a  beautiful  view  at  the  top,  and  then  descended  to  a  long,  nar- 
row plain,  pinched  in  between  the  mountain  and  the  river. 
Then  came  another  hill,  from  the  top  of  which  I  could  look 
down  on  the  plain  of  Espinal.  I  found  afterward  that  at  this 


HACIENDA  DE  ESPINAL.  535 

stage  of  water  it  is  easier  to  get  past  the  bases  of  these  hills  on 
the  banks  of  the  Cauca,  by  which  course,  on  my  return,  I  saved 
my  horse  much  severe  climbing.  After  reaching  the  plain,  I 
passed  a  plantation  of  guadua  ;  a  profitable  investment  of  mon- 
ey, and  a  good  use  of  that  rare  characteristic  here,  forethought. 
Never  before  have  I  met  with  this  grass — here  a  necessary  of 
life — except  growing  spontaneously. 

Espinal  and  Vijes  may  have  been  alike  in  their  origin.  All 
the  difference  between  them  may  depend  on  the  entailment  of 
Espinal,  which  kept  it  unpopulated,  and  the  property  of  a  single 
heir,  while  undivided  fractions  of  the  Vijes  land  gave  rise  to  a 
village,  filled  with  heirs  of  the  original  proprietor,  and  assignees 
of  those  heirs,  and  heirs  of  those  assignees,  and  so  on. 

I  had  intended  to  strike  into  the  Caldas  Cordillera  here,  to 
join  some  friends  that  were  gold-hunting  there,  but  the  family 
at  Espinal  assured  me  that  their  provisions  were  exhausted,  and 
that  they  must  return  to-night,  so  I  awaited  them. 

Espinal  has  a  splendid  Canaveral,  or  cane-field,  that  has  been 
in  good  bearing  for  some  twenty  years,  costing  them  nothing  but 
the  fencing  the  while.  They  were  meditating  a  water-mill  for 
the  cane.  In  examining  the  stream,  I  fell  in  with  an  interest- 
ing vine,  Aristolochia  reticulata.  The  flower  is  small ;  the  fruit 
of  the  size  of  a  medium  cucumber,  but  when  ripe  it  dehisces 
into  an  elegant  basket  six  inches  in  diameter.  Another  splen- 
did species,  A.  ringens,  called  saragoza,  which  I  found  at  Car- 
tago  and  La  Ribera,  has  a  much  larger  flower.  The  history  of 
a  single  flower  shows  how  the  botanist  has  occasionally  to 
fight  with  circumstances.  I  picked  the  only  flower  I  could 
find  or  had  ever  seen — a  superb  affair — on  Saturday  P.M.,  at 
Ribera.  On  Tuesday  night  I  lost  the  flower  at  Chorro,  two 
days  from  settlements.  On  Wednesday  I  threw  away  the  leaves 
at  Las  Playas.  On  Monday  morning  I  found  the  flower  at  El 
Chorro,  and  brought  it  home.  On  Tuesday  I  secured  new 
leaves.  During  the  week  the  ants  stole  the  flower,  and,  as  I 
could  not  get  another,  I  again  threw  away  the  leaves. 

The  history  of  a  shell  will  illustrate  also  the  chances  a  speci- 
men may  run.  I  brought  the  shell  in  question  to  Ribera  from 
beyond  El  Chorro.  The  ants  run  away  with  it.  After  I  left, 
it  was  found  and  sent  after  me  to  La  Paila.  I  left  it  there, 


536  NEW   GRANADA. 

and  it  was  sent  to  me  in  Cartago.  There,  in  my  hurry,  it  was 
left  again.  On  my  third  night  in  the  Quindio  the  mailman 
overtook  me.  Carefully  drawing  a  small  packet  from  his  ca- 
rriel  (pocket  slung  by  a  belt),  he  unrolled  it,  and  behold,  that 
same  shell ! 

The  difficulties  I  have  had  in  hanging  my  hammock  in  the 
house  are  well  illustrated  by  the  mode  of  doing  it  at  Espinal. 
The  beams  were  too  close  to  the  ceiling  to  permit  the  rope  being 
thrown  over.  No  ladder  was  to  be  had.  I  placed  the  table  un- 
der a  beam,  set  an  arm-chair  on  the  table,  and  a  second  arm- 
chair on  the  arms  of  the  first,  and  then,  standing  on  the  arms  of 
the  second,  I  accomplished  my  purpose.  To  climb  in,  I  put  the 
table  under  the  hammock,  and  a  chair  on  the  table. 

One  more  expedition  remains  for  me.  It  is  to  Bolivia,  the 
hacienda  of  Senor  Caldas,  to  see  his  family,  and  to  examine  the 
approaches  to  the  Pacific.  I  had  seen  a  drove  of  cattle  go  up 
the  brook  toward  the  lime-kiln.  I  was  told  they  were  going  to 
Panama  to  feed  the  laborers  on  the  railroad.  A  gentleman  of- 
fered himself  as  a  guide,  and  we  started  one  day  on  the  same 
route.  The  wheel-road  (for  there  was  once  a  lime-cart  at  Vijes) 
soon  changed  to  a  bridle-road,  and  that  to  a  path,  and  that  to  a 
goat-track,  and  still  our  course  was  upward  on  the  rocky  slope 
of  a  hill.  A  forest  crowned  the  summit,  but  seemed  not  to  ven- 
ture far  down  the  side.  Fire  must  once  have  destroyed  the  lower 
and  drier  woods :  it  was  probably  kindled  to  secure  pasturage. 

Thus  we  toiled  up  for  an  hour  or  two.  Then  we  stopped  to 
drink  at  the  stream.  Here  I  noticed  a  knoll  over  the  right  bank 
of  the  brook,  which  we  had  been  following  up,  though  always 
far  above  it,  and  on  the  hillside  on  the  left  bank.  There  were 
cattle  on  that  knoll,  and  I  wondered  how  they  got  up  there. 
I  asked  my  guide,  and  he  said,  "We  shall  see ;"  so  we  climbed 
the  knoll,  for  there  lay  our  road.  We  did  not  ride  up,  for  that 
would  have  been  cruel,  had  it  been  possible  even.  On  its  top 
we  saw  another  knoll  like  it,  and  nearly  as  high  above  it.  This 
must  be  ascended  in  the  same  way ;  and  then  we  mounted,  and 
entered  the  woods. 

The  woods  were  damp,  and  the  road  wet.  Interesting  trees 
overhung  our  path.  Among  the  most  interesting  of  these  were 
a  Lecythis,  with  dark  crimson  flowers,  and  for  a  fruit  a  five- 


HACIENDA  DE  BOLIVIA.  537 

celled  woody  box  of  more  than  two  inches  diameter.  It  was  a 
small  tree.  A  magnificent  Melastomate  tree,  with  large  roseate 
flowers,  and  a  Gesneriate  herb,  with  bright  scarlet  spots  on  the 
under  sides  of  the  leaves,  are  also  found  here.  We  at  length 
came  out  on  the  clear  land — llano — of  the  Pacific  slope,  and  in 
sight  of  Bolivia,  and  at  nearly  the  same  altitude.  To  reach  it 
we  had  to  descend  nearly  a  mile,  cross  a  ravine,  and  reascend. 

Sefior  Caldas  is  constructing  a  new  road  from  his  house 
through  the  woods,  by  which  much  of  the  steepness  and  dis- 
tance can  be  avoided,  as  well  as  this  last  ascent  and  descent. 
He  took  me  to  see  it.  The  first  day  I  changed  a  considerable 
piece  of  the  road  through  the  woods,  escaping  a  cruel  steep, 
such  as  all  men  who  have  ever  driven  a  carriage  instinctively 
dread.  The  next  day  we  went  over  his  summit,  and  I  found 
that  all  this  way  we  had  much  lower  ground  on  the  right  of  us, 
so  on  the  third  day  we  changed  this  also.  We  then  reviewed 
the  whole  through  the  woods,  and  I  had  the  satisfaction  of  see- 
ing a  route  practicable  to  carriages  traced  from  his  house  to 
within  sight  of  the  Cauca.  But  here  I  gave  up.  Vijes  lay  at 
our  feet  at  an  angle  of  depression  as  steep  as- the  roof  of  a  house. 
To  build  a  carriage-road  down  would  require  the  resources  of  a 
Napoleon ;  a  mule-path  was  all  he  had  hoped. 

I  was  exceedingly  pleased  with  La  Senora  de  Caldas  and  the 
children,  two  pretty  girls,  the  eldest  of  whom  had  red  cheeks 
and  intelligent  eyes.  She  is  by  far  the  prettiest  child  I  have 
seen  in  South  America,  if  not,  in  fact,  the  only  really  pretty  child 
of  native  origin.  Like  others  here,  however,  she  was  not  as  af- 
fectionate as  are  our  children.  They  are  unused  to  any  other 
caresses  than  permission  to  kiss  a  parent's  hand,  the  only  kiss- 
ing I  have  seen  here. 

I  met  here  also  Senora  Susana  Pinzon  de  Vargas,  and  her 
sister,  the  fair  Manuela  Pinzon.  They  had  come  up  to  the  cold 
for  the  benefit  of  Susana's  babe.  I  can  not  conceive  how  any 
one  can  want  so  cold  weather,  for  I  suffered  severely  here.  I 
was  without  bayeton,  hammock,  or  night-flannel.  I  slept  on 
the  poyo  of  the  sala  with  such  little  covering  and  bedding  as  the 
family  could  spare.  This  kept  me  from  dying,  although  the 
thermometer  was  at  56°,  and  the  house  had  never  had  a  fire  in 
it.  Manuela  and  another  young  lady  slept  in  a  sort  of  separate 


538  NEW   GRANADA. 

house ;  Susana,  being  a  matron,  or  for  the  convenience  of  the 
babe,  slept  in  the  family-room.  Manuela  complained  also  of 
sleeping  cold.  I  suggested  that  she  and  her  companion  sleep 
within  the  same  cover.  She  thought  two  persons  could  not 
learn  to  sleep  in  this  way,  and  was  surprised  to  hear  that  people 
at  the  North  did  not  do  themselves  up  into  separate  cocoons  to 
sleep. 

Here  is  the  coldest  place  where  I  have  seen  plantains  grow. 
Potatoes,  of  course,  grow  finely.  At  the  table  of  Senor  Caldas 
I  tried,  for  the  first  time  in  my  life,  an  Aroid  corm  or  "root," 
which  may  be  Arum  esculentum,  a  native  of  Africa.  It  is  here 
called  rascadera,  because,  I  imagine,  its  acrid  juice  irritates  the 
skin.  In  the  Sandwich  Islands  it  is  the  staff  of  life,  and  called 
taro ;  in  Louisiana  the  negroes  eat  it  under  the  name  of  potano 
(Sp.),  tannier  (Fr.).  I  found  it  quite  palatable.  Senor  Caldas 
is  quite  a  gardener,  but  a  large  part  of  his  garden  is  devoted  to 
pinks.  His  coffee  looked  the  best  of  any  I  have  seen,  and 
must  differ  greatly  in  flavor  from  that  of  the  plains  below. 

The  acequia  that  irrigates  his  garden  and  supplies  his  kitch- 
en supplies  a  bath  too.  This  is  a  deep  square  vat  in  the  open 
garden,  simply  dug  in  the  ground  and  nothing  more.  The  idea 
of  an  immersion  at  this  temperature  was  enough  to  make  me 
shiver.  He  once  attempted  to  drown  an  ant-hill  in  his  garden 
by  means  of  this  acequia.  It  swallowed  all  the  stream  readily, 
but  produced  no  results.  The  laborers  went  on  shearing  pieces 
from  leaves  as  before.  They  were  not  to  be  drowned.  What 
became  of  the  water  ?  This  mystery  was  solved  by  seeing,  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  down  the  hill,  all  the  water  of  the  acequia 
gush  out  of  the  ground  at  a  drain  his  enemies  had  prepared  for 
any  such  contingency.  He  then  set  two  peons  to  dig  for  the 
mother-ant,  a  misshapen  being  more  than  two  inches  long,  in- 
capable of  locomotion,  whose  whole  faculties  seem  concentrated 
in  the  work  of  reproduction.  They  dug  for  two  days,  and  prob- 
ably killed  her  unawares,  for  after  they  gave  up  the  ants  were 
effectually  subdued. 

In  the  garden  I  saw  one  of  those  curious  Indian  graves 
called  a  guaca.  They  are  worthy  of  a  more  complete  investi- 
gation than  I  have  been  able  to  give  them,  for  they  differ  from 
every  thing  I  have  seen  or  heard  of.  Some  are  simple  square 


RAILROAD   TO  THE   PACIFIC.  53  ) 

pits  excavated  in  the  ground,  covered  over  first  with  logs  and 
then  with  earth.  Others  have  side  excavations  in  them,  and 
very  often  small  passages  running  from  one  to  another.  Bones 
and  relics  are  found  in  them,  of  course,  but  I  find  very  few  of 
them  in  the  hands  of  people  here.  They  are  diligently  hunt- 
ed for  gold.  A  man  who  has  a  passion  for  this  (and  it  very 
naturally  becomes  a  mental  infirmity)  is  called  a  guaquero. 

As  the  guadua  does  not  grow  up  here  nor  yet  cana  brava,  nor 
chusquea,  Senor  Caldas  has  been  perplexed  for  fencing  materi- 
als. A  Western  settler,  with  axe,  maul,  and  wedges,  would  soon 
show  him  how  rails  were  made,  but  such  things  are  unknown 
in  New  Granada.  As  a  substitute,  he  has  chosen  stalks  of 
maize.  They  are  secured  erect,  somewhat  after  the  manner  of 
picket  fence,  and  answer  well.  Here  alone  have  I  seen  straw- 
berries cultivated,  but  it  was  not  the  season  for  them.  The 
species  here,  as  at  Bogota,  is  Fragaria  vesca,  the  same  as  ours. 

Senor  Caldas  thinks,  under  peculiar  circumstances,  the  Pa- 
cific Ocean  is  visible  from  near  the  house  at  sunset.  I  doubt 
it.  We  took  a  long  ride  in  order  to  get  a  good  view  of  the  val- 
ley of  this  branch  of  the  Dagua.  I  examined  well  the  ground 
from  where  I  had  explored  in  my  trip  up  from  San  Marcos, 
which  spot  was  fully  in  sight  of  here,  but  far  below  us.  We 
could  see  a  hill  above  Juntas,  as  I  was  told.  I  have  no  doubt 
remaining  that  a  good  carriage-road  can  be  built  from  the  fer- 
tile plains  of  the  Cauca  to  the  tide-waters  of  the  Pacific,  so  that 
the  teamster  may  drink  of  the  muddy  Cauca  in  the  morning, 
and  at  night  taste  the  brackish  waters  of  the  Pacific. 

Can  a  railroad  be  put  here?  As  a  physical  question  of 
grades  and  curves,  I  answer,  I  have  little  doubt  of  it.  Will  it 
pay  ?  That  is  a  serious  question.  I  answer,  not  at  once ;  and 
never  while  the  government  is  what  it  is.  That  the  time  will 
come  when  the  Cauca  will  be  connected  with  the  Pacific,  and 
the  Magdalena  by  railroad,  I  strongly  hope ;  but  there  are  great 
difficulties  in  the  way. 

The  most  formidable  physical  difficulty  is  in  the  unhealthy 
nature  of  the  Pacific  coast.  It  is  a  net-work  of  muddy  creeks 
and  islands,  as  bad,  perhaps,  as  the  west  coast  of  Africa.  If  a 
town  could  be  located  west  of  it  all,  it  might  be  healthy,  and 
from  such  a  point  cultivation  might  spread  to  the  east.  Bad  as 


540  NEW  GRANADA. 

Buenaventura  is,  its  business  must  increase  with  the  growth  of 
Panama,  Oregon,  and  California.  Could  the  Cauca  have  peace, 
and  I  now  hope  it  will,  the  productions  and  trade  must  also  be 
stimulated  from  this  source.  Here  I  stand,  not  three  days  from 
Panama,  and  the  valley  behind  me  has  held  a  population  equal 
to  all  that  New  Granada  now  has.  Even  west  of  me  are  fertile 
and  healthy  lands  not  occupied.  The  population  of  the  whole 
canton  that  lies  on  the  Pacific  is  3338.  The  belt  of  malaria 
must  be  broken — it  shall  be. 

But  there  is  a  moral  difficulty.  This  people  love  to  dance, 
but  they  hate  to  work.  How  will  you  induce  them?  With 
gold  ?  The  line  of  the  road  may  run  through  the  richest  gold 
deposit  of  the  world.  How  can  you  hire  cutting  and  filling  done 
where  the  earth  contains  an  ounce  to  the  bushel  ?  Hunger  can 
not  urge  them,  nor  cold,  nor  nakedness ;  and  among  the  rights 
most  sedulously  guarded  by  the  theories  of  the  ultra-republican 
is  the  right  to  be  a  vagabond.  These  theorists  are  in  favor  of 
exempting  the  improvident  and  indolent  from  all  burdens.  He 
buys  no  land,  and  often  pays  no  rent.  He  votes,  and  pays  no 
taxes.  The  nation  is  bent  on  repealing,  as  soon  as  they  are 
able,  every  tax  that  now  yields  any  thing.  They  have  abol- 
ished tithes,  of  which  it  cost  four  fifths  to  collect  the  remainder. 
Excise  on  spirits  and  tobacco  have  gone.  Salt  and  stamps  must 
go.  The  vagabond  gives  no  notes  and  eschews  law,  so  he  pays 
no  stamp-tax.  He  must  eat  salt,  and  here  he  pays  a  tax  of  a 
cent  or  two  a  year.  The  plan  for  the  future  is  to  assess  all  tax- 
es on  incomes  that  exceed  a  certain  amount.  This  will  let  him 
clear.  A  poll-tax  is  a  barbarism.  So  little  does  he  use  of  for- 
eign goods,  that,  even  while  the  impost  system  remains,  almost 
nothing  is  exacted  from  him  under  it.  The  gross  revenue  of 
the  nation  is  less  than  half  a  dollar  a  head,  and  this  by  loading 
the  wealth  of  the  nation  as  heavily  as  it  can  bear,  while  unthrift 
and  indolence  go  scot  free. 

Again,  there  is  no  stability  in  the  government.  I  do  not  now 
speak  of  revolutions,  for  the  last  two  were  unsuccessful,  an.l  I 
think  we  have  seen  the  last  of  them ;  but  the  theory  of  their 
government  is  against  stability.  Whether  there  ever  was  a 
worse  Constitution  than  the  present  I  know  not.  Its  adoption 
was  an  infamous  lie  of  the  Obando  administration,  to  which  the 


PROSPECTS  OF  NEW  GRANADA.  541 

nation  assented.  The  Liberal  Congress  of  1851  made  a  Con- 
stitution which  the  Congress  of  1853  had  a  right  to  adopt  or  re- 
ject. It  did  neither :  it  altered  it  till  it  lost  its  identity,  then 
voted  that  it  was  the  same,  and  adopted  it.  Then  the  nation 
shouted  for  joy,  and  cried,  "At  last  the  true  republic  has  come !" 

The  executive  is  shorn  of  its  powers.  Both  houses  are 
chosen  on  the  same  ticket,  and  their  deliberating  in  two  cham- 
bers is  a  farce,  for  the  absolute  majority  of  the  whole  Congress 
voting  in  joint  meeting  carries  every  point  against  the  will,  it 
may  be,  of  all  the  Senate,  and  in  spite  of  any  executive  veto. 

And  changes  the  most  stupendous,  such  as  it  would  take  twen- 
ty years  to  bring  about  in  England,  are  the  work  of  a  single  week, 
perhaps.  In  England,  neither  the  size,  shape,  nor  number  of 
the  counties  has  changed  within  a  century.  If  there  has  been 
a  year  without  a  variation  of  the  provinces  of  New  Granada,  I 
am  not  aware  of  it.  It  would  be  harder  to  abolish  the  troy 
pound  in  England  than  to  overthrow  twice  the  whole  metrical 
system  of  New  Granada. 

What  will  be  the  end  of  these  things  ?  I  conjecture  bank- 
ruptcy. The  expenditures  are  double  the  revenue ;  but  they  are 
not  to  be  so  when  their  plans  are  perfected  !  I  see  no  remedy 
but  to  plunge  back  into  the  barbarian  darkness  of  the  United 
States,  or  even  beyond  them.  But  to  restore  poll-taxes,  impris- 
onment for  debt,  passports,  and  vagrancy  laws,  ordaining  that 
the  labor  of  man  shall  build  roads,  bridges,  school-houses,  ay, 
and  prisons  too,  even  though  he  have  no  wish  to  travel,  learn, 
nor  yet  to  be  imprisoned,  would  be  enough  to  make  a  theorist 
like  Samper  rave ;  and  I  fear  it  will  not  be  done  till  they  have 
suffered  greater  calamities  than  they  have  felt  since  the  Span- 
iard left  their  shores. 

Such  conclusions  grieve  me,  for  I  love  the  Granadan  race. 
These  pages  testify  to  an  uninterrupted  series  of  kind  acts  of 
them  toward  me — kindness  that  I  can  never  repay.  I  can  hard- 
ly mention  a  single  reasonable  request  of  mine  neglected — not 
one  refused.  Even  many  unreasonable  ones,  as  I  afterward 
knew  them  to  be,  were  granted,  often  at  an  inconvenience  that 
I  greatly  regretted.  The  authorities,  too,  have  been  as  kind  as 
private  individuals.  All  sorts  of  documents  have  been  furnish- 
ed me,  even  by  offices  that  had  to  send  to  Bogota  to  replace 


542  NEW  GRANADA. 

those  spared  me.     Nothing  has  been  withholden  me  that  a  trav- 
eler could  ask. 

I  have  not  made  them  the  returns  I  would  have  wished.  I 
would  have  gladly  pointed  them  more  directly  to  a  purer  relig- 
ion that  can  remedy  the  evils  they  are  struggling  with ;  but  while 
I  could  profess  to  be  a  communicant  of  a  Protestant  church,  cir- 
cumstances rendered  it  unadvisable  to  do  more.  And  now,  in 
enlisting  the  sympathies  of  our  own  people,  I  am  doing  what  I 
can. 

To  tell  the  truth  of  them,  I  have  been  obliged  to  speak  of  their 
faults  and  deficiencies.  But,  after  all,  I  here  boldly  declare  the 
Granadinos  a  highly  moral  people.  I  speak  not  of  the  Scotch 
and  English  standard  of  morality  -,  that  is  not  fair.  They  are 
of  a  religion  highly  adverse  in  its  institutions  to  the  laws  of 
chastity,  and  in  this  they  must  be  compared  with  Catholic  coun- 
tries. Now  grant  that  the  proportion  of  illegitimate  births  be 
33  per  cent.,  and  I  think  it  must  be  less,  then  it  is  the  same 
as  that  of  Paris.  In  Brussels  it  is  35  per  cent. ;  in  Munich, 
48 ;  in  Vienna,  51 ;  and,  I  believe,  in  sacred  Rome,  far  worse. 
Suppose,  then,  that  New  Granada  is  as  defective  as  Paris,  the 
most  moral  of  these  cities.  You  must  recollect  that,  when  Paris 
was  yet  a  great  city,  unmarried  priests,  corrupt  monks,  and  un- 
restrained civil  and  military  officers  were  forming  a  new  code  of 
decency  and  morality  for  simple,  half-naked  Indian  converts  and 
subjects.  What  marvel  if  it  be  as  loose  as  that  of  Paris  ? 

Again,  as  to  the  crimes  against  life,  I  suppose,  in  all  the  na- 
tion, there  are  not  a  fifth  as  many  murders  as  in  New  York  city 
alone !  Probably  a  single  year  in  California  has  witnessed  as 
many  murders  as  have  been  perpetrated  in  New  Granada,  among 
two  millions  and  a  quarter  of  all  races,  since  it  has  had  its  place 
among  nations.  I  have  more  than  once  had  to  blush  for  the 
ruffianism  of  the  scum  of  our  nation,  like  which  nothing  can  be 
found  in  the  very  worst  population  of  New  Granada.  But  again 
to  figures.  I  can  not  estimate  the  murders  in  New  Granada  at 
more  than  3  per  million  per  annum.  The  commitments  for  mur- 
der in  England  are  4  per  million ;  in  Belgium,  18  ;  Ireland,  19; 
Sardinia,  20  ;  France,  34 ;  Austria,  36  ;  Lombardy,  46 ;  Tus- 
cany, 56  ;  Bavaria,  68 ;  Sicily,  90 ;  the  dominion  of  the  Pope, 
113;  and  Naples,  174. 


ANNIVERSARY  OF  THE  CRUCIFIXION.  543 

Say  I  not  well,  then,  that  the  Granadinos  deserve  a  high 
place  among  the  nations  of  the  earth  in  point  of  moral  charac- 
ter ?  And  we,  especially,  owe  them  our  respect  and  esteem. 
The  conduct  of  the  government  at  Bogota  in  relation  to  our 
Isthmus  transit  has  always  been  more  than  generous — it  has 
been  noble ;  and  to  us  they  look  for  examples  of  government — 
to  us  for  their  closest  allies  in  trade.  And,  lastly,  we  two,  of 
all  the  nations  of  the  earth,  are  without  any  established  church, 
granting  equal  rights  to  all  men  of  all  creeds.  Long  may  we 
remain  so,  but  not  long  alone.  VIVA,  PUES,  VIVA  LA  NUEVA 
GBANADA ! 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

SUPPLEMENTARY. 

Date  of  Crucifixion. — Lent. — The  purple  Gtrtain. — Blessing  Palm-leaves. — 
Ass  in  Church. — Pasos. — Nazarenos. — La  Resena. — White  Curtain  rent. — 
A  speaking  Trumpet. — Lamentations. — Monumentos. — Good  Friday. — Great 
Curtain  Rent  on  Saturday. — Paschal  Sunday.  —  Resurrection  Scene. —  Cm 
Bono  ? — A  Revolution  possible. — A  Murder. — Bochinche  of  Good  Friday. — 
Coup  d'etat. — Scenes  at  the  Palace. — Constitution  abolished. — Invasion  of 
Honda  and  Mesa. — American  Legation  stormed. — Battle  of  Cipaquira. — Af- 
fairs of  the  Cauca. — Surprise  at  Guaduas. — Scaling  Tequendama  with  Cannon. 
— Battle  of  Boza. — Storming  of  Bogota. — Fall  of  Melo. — The  next  President. 

MY  task  is  done.  It  has  not  been  as  well  done  as  I  wish, 
but  it  is  done  faithfully  and  conscientiously.  I  have  told  you 
all  I  have  seen  with  a  patience  and  a  faithful  minuteness,  only 
restrained  by  the  fear  of  being  tedious  beyond  endurance.  I 
have  reserved  for  this  supplementary  chapter  only  events  on  and 
since  Palm  Sunday,  April  9th,  1854,  including  chiefly  Holy 
Week  at  Bogota,  and  the  Revolution  of  1854. 

The  Jews  began  their  year  with  the  first  appearance  of  the 
new  moon  after  the  vernal  equinox.  The  14th  day  of  the  year 
(at  full  moon,  of  course)  was  the  Passover.  Our  Savior  was 
crucified  on  the  15th  day  of  their  year,  on  the  day  after  the  full 
moon.  All  this  is  known,  and  not  left  to  conjecture,  as  is  the 
anniversary  of  Christ's  birth,  which  was  most  probably  in  the 
warmer  part  of  the  year,  when  shepherds  spent  the  night  in  the 
open  air. 

The  Romish  and  English  Churches  ordain  the  annual  cele- 


544  NEW  GRANADA. 

bration  of  the  death  of  Christ.  They  call  the  Friday  nearest 
the  Passover  Holy  Friday  or  Good  Friday,  and  make  it  the  an- 
niversary of  the  Crucifixion. 

.  A  period  beginning  forty-four  days  before  is  Lent — Cuaresma. 
It  begins  on  Wednesday,  and  that  day  is  called  Ash  Wednes- 
day, because  priests  put  ashes  on  the  foreheads  of  as  many  as  ap- 
ply, which  some  contrive  to  keep  on  for  several  days.  Lent  con- 
tains forty  fasting  days,  and  every  Friday  and  the  last  Thursday 
are  rigid  fasts.  No  marriages  are  allowed  in  Lent.  Sunday  be- 
fore Good  Friday  is  called  Palm  Sunday,  the  week  succeeding 
is  called  Passion  Week,  and  the  Sabbath  closing  the  whole  is 
called  the  Paschal  Sunday.  Palm  Sunday  is  adopted  as  the  an- 
niversary of  Christ's  entry  into  Jerusalem,  in  order  to  make  the 
festival  begin  and  end  with  a  Sunday,  as  is  most  convenient  for 
celebrations.  From  Good  Friday,  the  time  of  the  Ascension 
of  our  Lord  (40  days)  and  the  Pentecost  (50  days)  are  reckoned. 
Those  days  which  thus  depend  on  the  moon,  and  vary,  there- 
fore, as  to  month  and  day,  are  called  Movable  Feasts. 

The  splendors  of  Home  are  not  to  be  expected  in  a  city  of 
40,000,  even  though  it  has  borne  for  300  years  the  title  of  City 
of  the  Holy  Faith — Santa  Fe.  So  poor  is  the  Church  here, 
and  so  indolent  the  priesthood,  that  the  most  to  be  expected  is 
caricature  and  puerile  imitation. 

Christmas  and  Corpus  Christi  are  greater  days  with  the  Bo- 
gotanos — Corpus  particularly — than  any  one  of  the  eight  days 
of  Holy  Week,  which  still  is,  as  it  ought  to  be,  the  greatest  fes- 
tival of  the  year.  All  the  week  before,  the  busy  note  of  prep- 
aration is  heard.  Images  must  be  taken  down,  cleaned,  re- 
paired, and  mustered.  So  the  chief  altar  of  every  church  is 
veiled  with  a  large  purple  curtain,  which  hangs  immovable  till 
rent  on  Holy  Saturday. 

The  more  enlightened  here  appear  ashamed  of  the  perform- 
ances, and  seemed  desirous  that  some  of  them  should  escape  my 
notice  and  my  irreverent  pen  ;  and,  as  there  is  but  one  centre 
of  attraction  at  once,  you  must  know  not  only  what  to  look  for, 
but  where  it  is.  I  had  nearly  lost  the  principal  piece  in  Palm 
Sunday  for  want  of  due  notice,  and  the  family  were  evidently 
little  pleased  that  I  had  got  wind  of  it. 

I  went  to  San  Francisco  at  8.     With  a  condescension  that 


PALM  SUNDAY.  545 

all  here  show  to  strangers,  I  was  permitted  to  insinuate  myself 
into  an  immense  crowd,  and  took  my  stand  on  one  of  the  lines 
of  benches  extending  from  the  front  door  to  the  high  altar. 

On  the  elevated  platform  of  that  altar,  in  a  dense  crowd  of 
boys  of  from  10  to  15  years  of  age,  were  several  priests,  chant- 
ing a  blessing  on  some  20  palm-leaves,  cut,  braided,  trimmed, 
and  some  of  them  ornamented  with  flowers.  The  crowd  thick- 
ens, some  noise  ensues,  and  the  priests  have  to  push  violently, 
but  good-humor  prevails. 

Now  an  image  is  descending  around  one  edge  of  the  purple 
curtain.  Preceded  by  the  palm-leaves,  it  is  advancing  toward 
the  door.  It  is  on  the  back  of  a  live  ass.  I  should  call  it  the 
figure  of  a  young  woman,  dressed  in  purple,  with  long  auburn 
hair  (not  of  Spanish  origin)  on  its  shoulders  in  profuse  curls. 
On  the  head  is  a  golden  glory,  with  rays  diverging  in  three  di- 
rections. It  has  no  beard.  It  rides  astride,  with  a  monk  on 
each  side  to  hold  it  on.  An  ass-colt,  as  large  as  a  small  calf, 
follows,  so  crowded  upon  by  boys  that  I  hardly  saw  it.  Pre- 
ceded by  the  palm-leaves,  and  accompanied  by  singing  monks, 
the  image  turned  and  went  out  of  the  mercy  door,  which  opens 
into  a  patio  of  the  convent.  From  there  it  entered  the  street, 
and  came  to  the  front  door  of  the  church,  which  was  shut.  Af- 
ter singing  within  and  without,  the  door  opened,  and  the  image 
passed  up  to  the  sacristia. 

I  followed.  Some  stout  monks  unloaded  the  ass  as  they 
would  take  off  a  forked  log,  pushing  the  garments  aside  very  ir- 
reverently, and  lugged  the  heavy  image  off  up  into  the  camarin, 
and  locked  the  door. 

A  stout  Philadelphian  outside  had  something  thrown  at  his 
hat  for  not  taking  it  off  to  the  procession,  but  nothing  farther 
was  done,  and  he  kept  on  his  hat. 

At  4  P.M.  I  saw  another  procession.  On  a  stage — anda — 
was  placed  a  figure  of  Christ  on  the  Cross,  and  two  female  fig- 
ures, with  long  hair  and  rich  velvet  dresses,  but  not  well  got  up. 
They  are  said  to  represent  the  Virgin  and  the  Apostle  John. 
A  figure  or  a  group,  with  the  stage  that  holds  it,  is  called  &paso. 
This,  which  I  call  paso  No.  2,  was  borne  by  14  men.  They 
had  black  bags  on  their  heads,  with  holes  cut  to  see  out  of.  The 
bags  are  called  capirotes,  and  the  wearers  Nazarenos.  They 

MM 


546  NEW  GRANADA. 

wore  a  tunic  of  glazed  black  cotton,  tied  round  the  waist  with  a 
rope  of  cabuya.  The  rope  passed  round  and  round,  making  a 
white  belt  sometimes  six  inches  wide.  On  their  shoulders  they 
wore  panolones  or  shawls  borrowed  of  their  female  friends.  A 
white  piece  of  cotton  for  a  handkerchief,  tucked  under  the  gir- 
dle, or  a  monstrous  string  of  beads  (never  smaller  than  that  seen 
peeping  from  beneath  the  Jesuit's  dress  on  page  193),  a  cushion 
on  the  shoulder,  and  alpargatas  on  the  feet,  complete  the  equip- 
ment of  the  Nazareno.  Each  had  a  crutch  in  his  hand,  on 
which  to  rest  the  paso  at  pauses. 

The  paso  was  preceded  by  boys  bearing  a  cross  and  ciriales, 
and  by  three  boys  ringing  hand-bells.  The  last  wore  cucu- 
ruchos.  These  are  conical  black  caps,  thirty  inches  high,  cov- 
ering the  face,  and  with  holes  for  the  eyes.  After  the  paso 
came  a  band  of  music,  and  a  disk  borne  by  the  alferez,  the 
proud  man  that  had  paid  for  the  wax  burned  in  the  procession. 
Two  peons  bore  the  candle-box,  a  sort  of  hand-barrow  painted 
brown.  The  gentlemen  who  made  up  the  procession  were  head- 
ed by  the  Cura  of  Las  Nieves,  Padre  Gutierrez,  father  to  the 
present  gobernador  of  the  province.  In  the  bareheaded  crowd, 
of  both  sexes  and  all  conditions,  that  surrounded  the  procession, 
I  was  surprised  and  sorry  to  see  a  respectable  American  gen- 
tleman. 

The  procession  entered  several  churches,  and  prayers  were 
said.  On  its  return  home  to  Las  Nieves  an  Ave  was  said  for 
the  founder  of  the  church,  "  should  he  still  chance  to  be  in  Pur- 
gatory," after  a  terrible  roasting  of  near  three  hundred  years. 

On  Monday,  P.M.,  a  much  larger  procession  set  out  from  Las 
Nieves  with  three  candle-boxes,  several  bands  of  music,  and 
eight  pasos,  viz. : 

No.  3.  A  black  cross,  with  a  strip  of  white  cloth  on  the  arms, 
and  flowers  at  the  foot. 

No.  4.  The  Good  Shepherd :  the  Savior,  a  lamb  on  his  shoul- 
ders, its  feet  tied  with  a  cord,  the  ends  of  which  were  held  by 
two  stout  angels,  in  form  of  women  with  wings. 

No.  5.  The  Last  Supper :  Savior  and  disciples  in  vestments 
for  mass,  looking  like  an  omnibus  with  thirteen  priests  inside, 
one  of  them  drunk.  This  was  John,  copied  from  Da  Vinci,  with 
his  head  inclined  as  no  one  holds  it  in  riding.  It  was  in  very 
bad  taste,  and  took  thirty  Nazarenos  to  carry  it. 


LA   RE  SEN  A.  547 

No.  6.  Scourging :  hands  tied  to  a  pillar  thirty  inches  high ; 
face  not  indicative  of  suffering ;  body  naked  to  the  waist,  and 
the  back  one  mass  of  raw  dried  flesh.  Two  Roman  soldiers, 
with  noses  terribly  aquiline,  and  upraised  scourge,  not  in  the  at- 
titude of  striking.  The  soldiers  are  called  Judios — Jews. 

No.  7.  Savior,  richly  dressed,  fallen  under  his  cross:  two 
soldiers,  and  a  boy  with  hammer  and  nails,  evidently  as  light 
as  cork,  in  a  basket  on  his  shoulder. 

No.  8.  The  Nailing  to  the  Cross,  it  is  said :  it  could  not  be 
well  seen  from  any  possible  position. 

No.  2.  As  yesterday. 

No.  9.  Dolores :  an  isosceles  triangle  of  gorgeous  cloth,  lace, 
and  spangles.  Angle  at  the  apex  from  30°  to  40°.  On  the 
triangle  is  a  beautiful  head,  with  flowing  hair.  On  the  breast 
of  the  figure  a  silver  heart,  transfixed  with  a  silver  sword. 

TUESDAY  MORNING. — LA  RESESA  AT   THE   CATHEDRAL. 

This  was  preceded  by  the  novelty  of  three  priests  saying 
three  masses  at  the  same  altar — a  temporary  one  in  the  back  of 
the  building — while  a  grand  mass  was  performing  at  a  tempo- 
rary altar  before  the  purple  curtain  of  the  high  altar.  Next 
came  music  from  hired  performers  in  the  orchestra  on  top  of  the 
choir,  and  from  the  canonigos  in  the  choir. 

Part  of  the  chapter  slowly  advanced  toward  the  altar.  Each 
canonigo  wore  on  his  head  a  hood  that  would  hold  a  bushel. 
In  addition  to  their  usual  robes  of  white  muslin  over  black,  they 
wore  black  gowns,  open  in  front,  with  trains  3  or  4  yards  long. 
Dr.  Herran,  the  head  of  the  Granadan  Church,  provisor  then  and 
archbishop  now,  was  at  their  head,  with  an  enormous  silk  ban- , 
ner,  2  yards  by  3.  It  was  black,  and  had  a  plain  red  cross  in 
the  centre.  He  ascended  the  platform,  and  they  stood  in  a  row 
at  the  foot  of  its  stairs,  on  which  a  clean  cloth  had  been  spread. 

He  waved  his  banner  for  a  long  time,  while  solemn  music 
came  from  the  orchestra.  He  managed  tolerably  well  to  keep 
his  train  extended  in  all  his  movements.  Twice  he  folded  his 
banner  and  rested  it  against  the  altar,  while  he  knelt  at  its 
foot.  As  he  was  waving  it  for  a  third  time,  a  thundering  crash 
from  the  choir  started  me.  It  was  made  by  throwing  down  the 
hinged  seats  in  the  stalls,  or  by  the  stamp  of  the  feet  of  musi- 


548  NEW  GRANADA. 

cians  on  loose  boards.  At  that  instant  the  canonigos  had  fallen 
prostrate  on  the  steps,  and  all  you  saw  was  six  gigantic  figures, 
extending  from  the  third  step  of  the  altar  back  some  20  feet. 
The  red  cross  still  waved  over  them ;  all  else  seemed  lifeless. 
Long  after,  they  arose ;  six  train-bearers  gathered  up  their  robes, 
and  they  retired  to  the  choir. 

This  was  the  only  performance  in  the  whole  week,  or  that  I 
have  ever  seen  in  a  Catholic  church,  that  ever  made  any  solemn 
impression  on  me.  All  else  was  puerile,  and,  when  not  pain- 
fully unfitting,  ridiculous.  More  music  succeeded,  and  a  triplet 
of  masses  at  that  temporary  back  altar,  the  only  ornamented 
place  in  the  Cathedral. 

Tuesday,  P.M.,  was  another  procession,  much  like  that  of 
Monday,  with  seven  pasos,  viz. : 

No.  10.  A  plain  cross,  much  like  No.  3. 

No.  11.  Child  with  lamb  on  his  shoulders. 

No.  12.  Christ  with  the  Doctors.  A  boy  of  five  standing  in 
a  chair ;  three  men. 

No.  13.  Christ  and  the  Cyrenean.  Divine  face  bruised ;  rich 
dress  unruffled;  Cyrenean  scantily  dressed,  with  turban  on,  not 
touching  the  cross ;  soldier  before  them  blowing  a  trumpet. 

No.  14.  Scourging.  Two  soldiers,  one  with  a  spike  made  of 
half-inch  iron  between  his  lips. 

No.  15.  Crucifixion.  Three  figures  nearly  nude :  that  in  the 
centre  nailed  to  a  cross,  the  others  tied.  From  the  wounded 
side  of  the  centre  figure  a  blue  and  a  white  ribbon  (blood  and 
water)  proceed  to  two  cups  in  the  hands  of  little  angels  in  the 
front  of  the  anda.  The  side  figures  have  a  wound  on  each  leg. 
Two  Marys,  and  a  John,  who  was  like  a  woman,  except  a  chin 
smooth  shaven. 

No.  16.  Dolores :  inferior  to  No.  9.  Two  little  angels  held 
her  hands.  Troops,  music,  and  other  accompaniments  as  usual. 
Cucuruchos  worn  by  little  boys  of  7  or  8. 

On  Wednesday,  A.M.,  Eesena  repeated  at  the  Cathedral.  It 
was  preceded  by  a  new  and  imposing  ceremony.  A  white  cur- 
tain was  drawn  in  front  of  the  platform  of  the  high  altar,  with 
much  space  between  that  and  the  larger  purple  one  that  covers 
the  altar  from  roof  to  floor.  A  protracted  mass  was  celebrat- 
ing, when  suddenly  a  colossal  fire-cracker  exploded,  and  the 


THE   SENTENCE.  549 

vail  was  rent,  and  displayed  a  crucified  figure  of  the  size  of  life ; 
then  succeeded  the  Resena  as  yesterday. 

Wednesday,  P.M.,  was  the  greatest  piece  of  charlatanry  ex- 
cept the  ass  in  church.  Accordingly,  the  church  of  San  Agus- 
tin,  where  it  came  off,  was  densely  filled.  By  a  politeness  in 
which  I  find  the  Agustinians  to  excel  all  others,  I  had  a  com- 
fortable seat  on  the  platform.  A  young  monk  preached  on  the 
contumely  which  Christ  suffered.  When  he  spoke  of  his  con- 
demnation, he  said,  "Listen  to  his  sentence."  Thereupon  a 
voice,  hidden  in  the  roof,  began  speaking  through  a  speaking- 
trumpet  the  words,  "I,  Pontius  Pilate,  Governor  of  Judea,"  etc., 
etc.,  in  Spanish,  of  course,  prolonging  his  vowels,  and  pausing 
every  eight  or  ten  syllables  for  breath ;  and  it  was  to  hear  this 
that  the  vast  crowd  were  thronging,  treading  on  each  other, 
pushing,  steaming,  and  corrupting  the  air ;  but  in  all  the  crowd 
there  was,  I  think,  but  one  person  voluntarily  pushing  or  mo- 
lesting others ;  except  in  his  neighborhood,  all  was  still  and  or- 
derly. 

After  much  delay,  the  pasos  for  a  procession  were  got  through 
the  crowd  and  mustered  in  the  street.  The  pasos  were, 

No.  17.  A  cross,  nearly  like  No.  3. 

No.  18.  The  Seizure :  Judas  kissing ;  a  soldier  with  a  pair 
of  blacksmith's  tongs  entangled  in  the  long  hair  of  the  Savior ; 
Malchus  on  his  back,  his  ear  yet  whole ;  a  wrathful  apostle  over 
him  with  a  machete. 

No.  19.  The  Mockery :  one  soldier  tearing  the  Savior's  hair, 
another  standing  behind  him  with  a  very  knotty  club,  copied 
from  the  Spanish  playing-cards. 

No.  20.  St.  Veronica  holding  by  two  corners  the  handkerchief 
with  which  she  had  wiped  the  Lord's  face ;  three  very  bad  por- 
traits of  the  sacred  face  on  the  handkerchief. 

No.  13.  With  the  addition  of  a  smoking-cap  to  the  head  of 
the  Cyrenean  in  place  of  the  turban. 

No.  21.  Crucifixion  :  much  like  15,  except  the  thieves  were 
absent,  and  the  white  and  blue  ribbons  terminated  in  apothe- 
caries' minim  glasses. 

No.  22.  Dolores :  the  extreme  tail  of  her  dress  twisted  and 
curled  up.  On  the  very  tip  stood  a  funny  little  angel  in  black, 
with  a  black  feather  in  his  cap. 


550  NEW  GRANADA. 

No.  23.  A  shaving  or  splinter  of  the  very  cross  in  a  cus- 
todia,  placed  in  a  silver  shrine  borne  by  canonigos.  Three  com- 
panies of  soldiers  bore  candles  in  the  procession,  and  General 
Melo  was  alferez,  and  bore  the  estandarte  that  signified  that  he 
had  supplied  the  wax. 

On  Wednesday  night  Lamentations  were  sung  at  the  Cathe- 
dral by  the  orchestra,  and  the  Tinieblas  by  the  chapter.  A  row 
of  candles  were  extinguished  one  by  one  during  the  tinieblas  or 
shadows.  Six  tall  candles  at  the  altar  were  constructed  to  go 
out  spontaneously,  and  those  in  the  choir  or  orchestra  were  also 
extinguished,  but  there  was  still  burning  enough  to  see  a  little. 
The  music  reminded  me  of  the  ^Eolian  harp,  and  also  of  the 
howling  of  dogs  at  midnight.  It  was,  on  the  whole,  the  most 
agreeable  part  of  a  tedious  performance. 

About  9  commenced  the  Miserere.  The  hired  musicians  sung 
this  by  a  single  candle,  so  placed  as  to  illuminate  only  the  book. 
This  music  is  good,  but  is,  I  think,  overrated.  Zingarelli's 
Miserere,  in  our  "  Mozart  Collection,"  is  far  superior  to  it.  As 
many  seemed  to  have  gone  to  see  the  lights  put  out  as  to  hear 
the  music.  I  was  very  tired  before  I  left. 

HOLY  THURSDAY. — This  is  indeed  a  great  day.  No  wafer 
can  be  consecrated  at  the  mass  on  Good  Friday,  so  at  the  mass 
to-day  two  wafers  are  consecrated,  and  the  one  for  to-morrow 
is  kept  in  great  parade,  generally  at  a  side  altar,  tricked  out 
in  all  manner  of  finery.  It  is  called  a  monumento.  Every 
body  visits  the  monumentos.  I  was  at  it  all  day  and  all  the 
evening,  and  visited  eighteen  of  them.  They  took  the  form  of 
pasteboard  edifices,  grottoes,  staircases,  etc.  The  edifice  at  San- 
ta Ines  had  a  fine  dome  on  top,  and  filled  the  whole  end  of  the 
church.  At  night  it  blazed  with  170  candles :  it  had  no  images. 
Many  others  were  really  pretty. 

The  wafer  of  the  Cathedral  is  kept  under  a  guard  of  four  sol- 
diers, like  the  corpse  of  a  general.  It  is  placed  with  great  pomp 
in  a  silver  chest  locked  with  a  golden  key.  The  keeping  of 
this  key  is  the  highest  honor.  This  year  it  fell  to  President 
Obando.  The  keeper  of  the  key  wears  it  on  his  neck  by  a  gold- 
on  chain,  and  delivers  it  up  at  Friday's  mass  with  great  cere- 
aiony.  On  one  occasion  they  say  that  the  key-keeper  went  to 
Tunja  in  the  interim,  committed  a  murder,  and  returned  in  sea- 


HOLY  THURSDAY.  55] 

son  to  deliver  up  the  key  in  person.  The  distance  he  must 
have  traveled  was  211  miles  :  it  is  74  hours  travel  for  the  mail ! 
The  distance  is  not  exaggerated,  but  the  story  may  be  false. 

Up  to  the  consecration  in  the  mass  to-day  the  bells  have  been 
in  a  continual  state  of  excitement,  knowing  no  rest  except  at 
night.  Now,  saving  that  the  Cathedral  clock  still  strikes  the 
hours,  all  are  silent,  even  to  the  hand-bells  at  the  altar.  In  the 
place  of  bells  are  used  matracas,  somewhat  like,  if  not  identical 
with,  the  watchman's  rattle. 

In  the  afternoon  occurred  at  the  Cathedral  the  washing  of  the 
feet  of  twelve  poor  men  by  Dr.  Herran,  but  this  I  did  not  see 
for  want  of  due  notice. 

Another  procession  set  out  from  La  Vera  Cruz,  one  of  the 
chapels  in  the  monastery  of  San  Francisco.  Though  it  had  but 
five  pasos,  the  character  of  the  persons  who  followed  them  made 
it  the  most  interesting  procession  of  the  week.  The  pasos  were, 

No.  24.  A  cross,  much  like  No.  3. 

No.  25.  The  Garden :  the  Lord  kneeling  among  the  flowers 
before  a  bush  of  the  most  splendid  terrestrial  mistletoe,  Lo- 
ranthus  Mutisii,  with  a  little  angel  in  the  top  of  the  bush.  N.B. 
Mutis  always  had  the  most  beautiful  species  in  the  genus  named 
after  him.  I  ached  to  get  hold  of  these  scarlet  flowers,  six  inches 
long,  for  I  had  then  never  found  more  of  that  species  than  a 
single  mangled  flower  in  the  street. 

No.  26.  Bearing  the  Cross :  single  figure,  half  size. 

No.  27.  Christ  at  the  Pillar :  he  has  turned  his  back  to  it, 
his  hands  still  being  tied  to  it.  It  is,  as  always,  thirty  inches 
high.  Peter  is  kneeling  before  his  Lord. 

No.  28.  The  Sentence:  Savior;  Pilate;  two  soldiers;  table; 
modern  writing  implements ;  sentence,  written  on  paper  in  Span- 
ish; water-pitcher. 

Here  followed  the  merchants,  with  candles  and  music  preced- 
ing their  image  of  the  Savior  (No.  29),  not  made  up  of  money- 
bags, with  small  gold  coins  for  eyes. 

Next,  the  students  of  the  Colegio  of  Santo  Tomas,  in  barretes 
—  clerical  caps — gowns,  and  the  broad  white  collar  of  their 
school.  Following  them  was  (No.  30)  their  heavy,  beautiful 
bronze  crucifix. 

Lastly  and  chiefly  came  the  LADIES  OF  BOGOTA,  in  black  hair, 


552  NEW   GRANADA. 

eyes  ditto,  and  black  lace  veils  on  their  heads,  preceding  their 
paso  (No.  31),  the  Virgin.  I  never  had  imagined  that  there  was 
so  much  beauty  in  Bogota. 

The  military  closed  the  procession. 

GOOD  FRIDAY  is  a  commemoration  of  the  most  memorable 
day  in  the  history  of  our  globe — the  Fourth  of  July  of  the  uni- 
verse ;  but  probably  we  shall  never  be  certain  of  the  precise  day 
of  the  year  on  which  it  occurred,  as  we  do  not  certainly  know 
the  exact  year.  Even  if  we  knew  it,  ought  human  additions  be 
made  to  divine  ordinances  for  celebrating  the  great  event  ?  I 
expected  for  to-day  solemn  appeals  to  the  senses ;  that,  in  the 
Cathedral,  dirges,  darkness,  and  dumb  show  should  prevail 
"  from  the  sixth  to  the  ninth  hour."  Unfortunately,  the  Church 
differs  from  me ;  "so  much  the  worse  for  the  Church." 

The  morning  mass  has  three  attractions :  first,  the  officiating 
priest  and  his  two  assistants  prostrate  themselves  at  the  altar, 
and  lie  there  covered  up  with  a  purple  cloth  for  some  time ;  sec- 
ondly, the  adoration  of  the  Cross,  which  is  laid  before  the  altar 
on  a  cushion,  with  a  money-dish  at  its  side.  After  the  priests, 
many  of  the  most  respectable  citizens  go  up  two  and  two,  kneel 
three  times,  kiss  the  cross,  put  money  in  the  dish,  and  retire. 
Thirdly,  the  taking  the  wafer  from  the  monumento.  President 
Obando  did  not  appear  this  morning,  and  the  key  was  on  the 
neck  of  the  dean  of  the  chapter.  The  mass  is  earlier  than  usu- 
al, with  the  consecration  and  other  parts  omitted,  and  no  extra 
mass  is  allowed  this  day. 

•  It  was  expected  by  some  that  the  Cathedral  services  would 
include  a  series  of  sermons  through  the  three  hours  of  agony, 
but,  since  the  re-expulsion  of  the  Jesuits,  it  is  difficult  to  find 
preachers  enough.  I  found  the  property-men,  as  a  theatre-goer 
would  call  them,  hard  at  work.  When  they  were  through,  and 
the  vast  edifice  moderately  full,  the  canonigo  Saavedra,  a  bitter 
enemy  of  the  late  lamented  Archbishop  Mosquera,  began  a  ser- 
mon, which  I  could  make  nothing  of  on  account  of  distance  and 
noise.  Twice  he  sharply  rebuked  the  crowd,  which  at  length 
became  so  dense  as  to  fix  every  component  of  it  immovably. 

The  whole  stage  was  covered,  mostly  with  boys.  Two  lad- 
ders projected  above  the  level  of  their  heads,  and  also  the  cucu- 
ruchos  of  various  boys.  As  it  was  nearly  a  yard  from  "  the 


GOOD  FRIDAY.  553 

pivot  of  the  skull"  to  the  top  of  the  cucurucho,  its  point  exag- 
gerated the  motions  of  the  unseen  head  of  the  wearer  in  a  very 
ludicrous  manner. 

At  length  the  two  ladders  were  applied  to  a  cross  planted  in 
the  platform,  having  on  it  a  figure  slightly  under  size.  Two 
priests  ascended :  one  passed  a  cloth  round  the  body,  the  other 
drew  out  the  nails.  They  lowered  the  body,  carried  it  to  the 
feet  of  an  image  of  the  Virgin,  and  then  laid  it  in  a  splendid 
sarcophagus,  all  silver  and  tortoise-shell,  of  the  shape  and  size 
of  a  bathing-tub,  and  filled  with  costly  pillows.  The  sermon 
was  done,  and  the  vast  Cathedral  relieved  of  its  crowd.  I  es- 
caped to  open  air,  and  placed  myself  in  wait  for  the  procession 
in  the  Calle  Real. 

Paso  32  was  a  simple  cross,  much  like  No.  3. 

No.  33  was  a  representation  of  the  holy  winding-sheet,  which 
retains  the  figure  of  a  human  body  on  it,  and,  strangely  enough, 
is  yet  in  existence!  The  representation  was  stretched  on  a 
frame  like  a  screen.  The  figure  was  visible  on  both  sides,  and 
was  too  naked  to  be  decent,  and  too  dirty  to  be  ornamental. 

No.  34.   St.  John  the  Evangelist. 

No.  35.  Mary  Magdalene. 

No.  36.  The  Sarcophagus,  with  Joseph  of  Arimathea  and  Nic- 
odemus  at  the  head  and  foot.  It  was  followed  by  the  large  black 
Hag,  with  crimson  cross,  used  in  the  Besena. 

No.  37.  Our  Lady  of  the  Solitude,  by  far  the  most  costly 
image  in  Bogota.  The  figures  on  the  dress  are  said  to  be 
wrought  in  real  diamonds  and  other  precious  stones.  Six  little 
angels  in  black  lace  surrounded  the  principal  figure. 

These  all  went  to  La  Vera  Cruz,  where  the  sarcophagus  was 
taken  from  the  anda  and  deposited  there.  They  started  on  their 
return,  when  the  programme  was  broken  in  upon  by  the  first 
bochinche — riot — which  was  a  precursor  of  scenes  yet  to  follow, 
and  in  connection  with  which  it  will  be  described.  Some  think 
that  there  was  a  design  to  despoil  Soledad  of  her  jewels  in  the 
melee.  I  do  not  believe  it.  She  and  all  the  rest  escaped  safe 
to  the  Cathedral,  except  Joseph  of  Arimathea  and  Nicodemus, 
who  took  refuge  in  San  Francisco. 

I  omit  for  the  present  the  incongruous  events  of  the  afternoon. 
The  Lamentations  were  to  be  succeeded  by  a  sermon  from  a  Do- 


554  NEW  GRANADA. 

minican  friar,  who  had  the  reputation  of  being  long-winded.  1 
went,  and  found  the  front  door  of  the  Cathedral  closed  for  fear 
of  the  mob.  Unfortunately,  I  found  the  mercy-door  open,  and 
entered  very  late,  but  soon  enough.  The  sermon  commenced  at 
nine.  The  subject  was  "  the  Sorrows  of  Our  Lady  of  the  Sol- 
itude after  the  death  of  Christ."  I  had  secured  a  seat  facing 
the  pulpit.  The  odor  of  unwashed  skins,  or,  perhaps,  of  ill-con- 
ditioned ulcers,  made  it  almost  untenable ;  and  at  last,  finding 
that  the  fleas  had  converted  the  floor  where  the  women  sat  into 
a  mart  of  human  blood,  and  unwilling  myself  to  be  a  martyr  to 
them,  I  went  home. 

GLORIA  MASS  was  Saturday,  at  8  A.M.  Numerous  cere- 
monies of  annual  occurrence  were  performed.  Fire  was  struck 
with  flint  and  steel,  and  the  huge  Paschal  candle,  with  five  lumps 
of  incense  sticking  to  it,  was  lighted.  Holy  oil  and  holy  water 
were  consecrated.  The  priests  lay  down  again  as  yesterday, 
and  were  covered  up  a  long  while.  They  then  went  to  the 
sacristia,  and  came  back  in  white  vestments. 

As  the  mass  proceeded  the  purple  veil  was  torn  asunder,  and, 
an  instant  after,  the  huge  fire-cracker  went  off  again,  having 
hung  fire  a  little ;  the  hand-bell  at  the  altar  broke  loose,  and 
rang  as  if  it  would  never  stop ;  the  bells  of  all  sizes,  whole  and 
cracked,  from  this  tower  and  all  others,  joined  in  ;  and  well  did 
they  make  amends  for  two  days'  silence.  Now  the  people  be- 
gan to  disperse ;  soon  the  mass  closed,  and  I  went  home,  glad 
that  there  were  no  more  ceremonies  to  be  observed  to-day. 

PASCHAL  SUNDAY. — Long  before  light  I  was  in  the  streets, 
prompted  by  a  spirit  of  diligence  rather  than  of  curiosity.  Al- 
ready at  Santo  Domingo  were  women  kneeling  before  the  door, 
which  was  not  to  be  opened  for  an  hour.  It  had  rained  in  the 
night,  and  the  morning  air  was  damp  and  raw.  At  Vera  Cruz 
I  found  lights  within,  the  doors  barred,  and  a  large  crowd  about 
them.  At  4  they  were  opened. 

At  the  altar  was  a  splendid  scene.  There  was  the  tortoise-shell 
crib,  with  a  figure  standing  in  it  much  larger  than  the  one  put 
in  on  Friday.  It  had  a  red  flag  in  the  left  hand,  and  the  right 
pointed  upward.  At  each  side  was  a  figure  of  a  soldier,  tum- 
bled back  and  propped  up,  but  not  in  the  attitude  of  a  falling 
man.  I  heard  mass,  went  home,  and  to  bed  again. 


PASCHAL   SUNDAY.  555 

At  8  I  was  again  in  the  street,  when  a  Virgin  (paso  38)  went 
to  meet  the  figure  in  the  sarcophagus  (No.  39).  A  man  went 
before  firing  rocket-crackers — cohetes — and  a  large  silver  double 
cross — craz  alta — which  had  opened  every  procession  muffled, 
was  now  disclosed.  The  streets  were  fuller  than  ever.  I 
thought  it  useless  to  try  to  enter  the  Cathedral,  but  made  the 
attempt.  To  my  surprise,  I  found  little  difficulty,  thanks  to  the 
innate  politeness  of  the  meanest  Granadino.  I  even  succeeded 
in  reaching  my  favorite  post  on  top  of  the  choir  in  front  of  the 
orchestra.  Here  I  faithfully  sat  the  great  mass  out,  but  saw 
nothing  particularly  interesting  to  record. 

On  leaving,  I  asked  a  priest  where  I  could  hear  a  sermon.  He 
told  me  he  thought  none  would  be  preached  that  day  in  all  Bo- 
gota. I  learned  afterward  that  there  would  be  one  in  the  con- 
vent of  Santo  Domingo  at  night.  I  went,  and  found  a  good 
seat.  From  this  I  was  driven  by  the  odor  of  my  next  neigh- 
bor. I  could  find  no  other,  would  not  stand,  and  came  away. 
Thus  ended  my  Holy  Week. 

As  to  the  effects  on  my  own  mind,  the  most  striking  is  utter 
fatigue  and  disappointment.  There  were  a  few  good  faces  in 
the  figures ;  a  very  few  were  quite  good ;  but  true  attitudes, 
that  did  not  set  the  laws  of  gravity  and  the  principles  of  anato- 
my at  defiance,  were  rare  indeed ;  and  had  there  been  even  a 
masterpiece  of  art,  it  would  quite  probably  have  escaped  notice. 
So  to  degrade  sacred  subjects  must  have  a  terrible  effect  on  those 
who  make  a  trade  of  it. 

But,  suppose  all  to  be  arranged  in  the  highest  style  of  art, 
would  it  promote  the  cause  of  piety  of  heart  ?  I  think  not. 
There  are  some  really  good  crucifixions  ;  they  impress  the  be- 
holder, but  they  lose  their  force  in  time,  and  only  blunt  the  feel- 
ings to  the  more  ordinary  impressions  from  meditation.  As  to 
the  merit  of  these  performances,  I  have  on  my  side  the  judgment 
of  all  the  enlightened  Granadinos.  There  is  a  general  desire 
among  them  to  forbid  by  law  all  religious  processions  in  the 
streets.  But  as  to  the  theological  question  of  the  permission 
of  such  appeals  to  the  senses,  I  should  differ  from  them ;  but  I 
can  not  here  discuss  the  question. 

I  return  now  to  Friday  night  and  its  bochinche.  Nobody 
knew  its  origin.  It  was  near  the  bridge,  convent,  and  barracks 


556  NEW  GRANADA. 

of  San  Francisco,  but  south  of  them  all.  It  may  well  have 
been  an  insult  offered  in  a  dining-saloon  to  an  officer  by  some 
hot-headed  theorist  schoolboy,  or  the  reverse.  The  lower  class 
nidod  rather  with  the  military.  Stones  flew.  Well-dressed 
gentlemen  ran.  I  went  to  see  what  was  the  matter,  but  could 
see  nothing.  The  governor,  Pedro  Gutierrez  (Lee),  was  soon  on 
the  ground.  He  called  for  a  file  of  soldiers  to  station  across  the 
street,  just  south  of  the  bridge.  I  saw  them  mustered,  and 
inarched  out  from  the  barracks. 

The  street  was  now  full,  and  mostly  of  young  artisans  and 
loafers.  I  observed  the  conduct  of  the  gobernador  narrowly, 
and  thought  it  highly  judicious.  He  did  not  proceed  harshly, 
but  coaxingly,  often  jokingly.  Thus  he  traversed  the  dense 
crowd  from  the  bridge  to  the  Cathedral.  The  armed  police — 
guardia  de  policia — were  out  in  the  Plaza,  but  did  not  act.  No 
arrests  were  made,  and  all  was  quiet. 

In  the  last  chapter  I  stated  that  I  thought  we  had  had  our 
last  Granadan  revolution.  I  must  now  say  why  I  retained  my 
opinion  after  what  I  saw  on  Holy  Friday.  In  the  first  place, 
authority  had  triumphed  in  the  last  two  revolutions.  Second, 
the  liberation  of  the  Church  removed  one  strong  motive  for  rous- 
ing fanaticism  to  arms.  So  I  counted  for  nothing  all  the  talk 
I  had  heard  from  the  beginning  of  March  to  the  middle  of  April, 
because  it  was  clear  to  me  that  any  attempt  made  at  this  time 
would  fail. 

I  did  not  take  into  account,  as  I  should,  first,  that  there  was 
little  risk  in  failing.  Almost  all  the  eminent  men  in  the  nation 
had  been  rebels  in  1841  or  in  1851.  By  the  very  law,  treason 
is  not  a  capital  crime,  even  when  it  ends  in  bloodshed.  Sec- 
ond, I  did  not  reflect  that  a  civil  war  might  therefore  be  en- 
kindled merely  to  gratify  present  revenge  without  hope  of  ulti- 
mate success. 

The  government  itself  was  desperate.  It  had  yielded  to  Red 
Republican  (Golgota)  theories  too  far.  These  speculators  had 
adopted  the  belief  that  universal  suffrage  and  a  free  constitution 
were  a  remedy  for  all  human  evils.  They  had,  as  their  expos- 
itor Samper  says,  "«  Hind  faith  in  principles.'1''  They  had 
made  their  changes  too  rapidly,  and  were  bent  on  trying  all 
kinds  of  experiments ;  and  especially  they  had  a  fanatical  ha- 


MURDER  OF  A  SOLDIER.  557 

tred  to  a  standing  army.  That  of  New  Granada  did,  in  fact, 
strike  me  rather  as  a  nuisance,  but  it  was  small  and  diminish- 
ing, and  all  attempts  at  a  militia  had  failed. 

General  Melo,  the  commander  of  the  cavalry  in  Bogota,  seem- 
ed to  have  become  particularly  obnoxious  to  the  Golgotas.  They 
hated  him.  An  ex-gobernador  said  to  me  one  day,  "Melo's 
troop  rode  furiously  past  me  just  now ;  they  had  as  lief  ricle 
over  one  as  not.  If  I  had  had  a  pistol,  I  would  have  fired  aft- 
er them." 

Melo  was  charged  with  murdering  a  corporal,  named  Ramon 
Quiros,  in  December,  1853.  His  dying  statement,  as  he  lay  in 
the  military  hospital  a  day  or  two  after  his  wound,  was  that  he 
was  stabbed  in  the  street  by  a  person  unknown.  Half  Bogota 
believe  that  Quiros  died  with  a  lie  in  his  mouth  to  save  his  mur- 
derer. They  say  that  he  went  out  of  the  barracks  by  night  with 
his  uniform  covered  with  a  ruana  contrary  to  rule,  and  returned 
stupefied  with  drink.  Melo  reproved  him ;  he  answered  inso- 
lently, and  Melo  was  fool  enough  to  run  him  through ;  arid  then 
he  dies  three  days  after,  saying  that  Melo  did  not  stab  him.  On 
the  strength  of  such  stories,  the  Conservador  Gutierrez,  who 
was  elected  gobernador,  proceeded  to  take  informations  on  the 
matter  when  he  came  into  office  on  1st  January,  1854.  Melo, 
if  innocent,  had  injuries  to  resent ;  and,  whether  guilty  or  not, 
punishment  to  fear. 

It  was  evident,  too,  that  the  adminstration  was  hedged  in 
Avith  enemies.  They  had  the  priesthood  against  them,  for  they 
had  imprisoned  and  exiled  bishops,  and  had  ended  by  with- 
drawing all  support  from  the  Church.  Nearly  every  goberna- 
dor elected  in  September  was  an  enemy  to  government ;  and  in 
many  cases  I  am  compelled  to  believe  that  the  priests  interfered 
scandalously  with  the  election.  So  the  government,  occupying 
a  middle  ground,  had  few  and  lukewarm  supporters,  and  bold, 
active  enemies.  They  had  little  to  lose  by  a  coup  d'etat,  but 
nothing  to  gain  from  it. 

Many  thought  differently  from  me  in  this  matter.  They  were 
sure  of  a  conspiracy  about  to  burst.  The  Senate  passed  a  res- 
olution requesting  the  executive  to  place  arms  in  the  hands  of 
the  gobernador  for  the  protection  of  the  city  against  the  sol- 
diery. Obando  assured  them  that  their  fears  were  groundless. 


558  NEW   GRANADA. 

But  so  little  satisfied  were  some  that  they  even  meditated  a 
counter  conspiracy  to  seize  the  barracks  of  San  Francisco  by  a 
sudden  attack  with  "  white  arms" — i.  e,  swords  and  poniards. 
This  was  thought  too  rash. 

I  had  been  invited  to  a  party  on  Sunday  night,  which,  ot  course, 
I  declined  attending  on  account  of  the  day.  Many  of  the  bit- 
terest enemies  of  the  military  in  Congress  were  present  there,  and 
some  also  at  another.  A  large  number  of  the  lower  class,  ene- 
mies to  coats  and  gentility,  and  lovers  of  any  thing  new,  had 
been  put  under  arms  before  midnight,  and  the  military  proceed- 
ed thus  to  seize  those  who  were  obnoxious  to  them.  Governor 
Gutierrez  foresaw  the  evil  in  season  to  escape  it.  He  had  resign- 
ed on  Saturday,  and  left  Bogota.  Colonel  Emigdio  Briceno,  an 
excellent  gentleman,  took  his  place  on  Sunday  night,  and  when 
he  had  been  governor  four  hours  he  was  a  prisoner.  The  most 
extensive  arrests  were  made,  including  all  the  males,  attendants 
included,  at  the  party  to  which  I  had  been  invited.  The  chief 
men  sought  for  escaped.  Few  left  Bogota,  but  all  hid.  Sam- 
per, who  was  a  Congress-man,  and  his  friend  Murillo,  ex-Sec- 
retary of  the  Treasury,  and  now  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Eep- 
resentatives,  lived  together.  Samper  and  Mrs.  M.  were  at  a 
ball  or  party,  and  her  husband  somewhere  else.  Their  house 
was  attacked  with  a  volley  of  musketry  just  before  their  re- 
turn, and  they  escaped.  The  house  was  treated  rather  roughly, 
but  not  pillaged  except  of  eatables. 

By  far  the  worst  act  of  the  whole  night,  however,  was  firing 
at  a  French  goldsmith  as  he  stood  at  a  window  in  his  balcony 
to  see  what  was  going  on.  Quite  a  number  of  balls  struck  the 
frame  and  sash  of  the  window,  and  it  was  indeed  a  wonder  that 
he  was  not  killed.  Melo  himself  apologized  for  the  act  next 
day.  Horses  as  well  as  men  were  seized.  All  stables,  not  the 
property  of  foreigners,  were  visited,  and  the  horses  taken, 

I  was  awaked  at  daybreak  by  the  sound  of  cannon,  which 
were  celebrating  the  entire  success  of  the  night's  work.  I  rose 
and  went  to  a  servant,  and  asked  what  was  the  matter.  She 
told  me  that  it  was  a  revolution.  I  then  took  my  hat,  and  made 
my  way  to  the  Plaza.  At  the  northwest  corner  I  found  a  body 
of  unwashed  recruits  drawn  across  the  whole  street.  "You 
can  go  no  farther,  Senor,"  said  one.  "Yes  he  can,  too,"  re- 


BEGINNING   OF  THE  REVOLUTION.  559 

plied  another ;  "we  have  no  right  to  stop  foreigners.  Pass  in, 
Seiior." 

I  declined  passing  in,  but  looked  around  the  Plaza.  A  large 
body  of  men  were  drawn  up  there,  most  of  them  in  ruanas. 
They  appeared  much  pleased  with  their  new  occupation.  So  I 
went  home  and  completed  my  toilet,  and  went  to  the  vice-presi- 
dent's house.  The  door  was  not  opened  to  my  call,  but  a  voice 
behind  told  me  that  Senor  Obaldia  had  been  summoned  to  the 
palace  at  daybreak,  and  had  not  returned. 

I  went  there  and  found  a  strong  guard  at  the  door.  I  asked 
permission  of  Major  Jiron,  who  commanded,  to  enter,  and  was 
requested  to  wait  a  moment.  At  that  instant  an  aid-de-camp 
brought  him  an  order,  to  which  he  responded  by  ordering  the 
aid  into  arrest.  Each  attempted  to  arrest  the  other,  but  the 
aid's  orders  prevailed.  Jiron  attempted  to  stab  an  officer  who 
seized  him,  but  instantly  he  had  a  horse-pistol  at  his  breast,  and 
more  than  one  sword  aimed  at  him.  I  sprang  to  get  out  of  the 
range  of  the  ball,  and  expected  instantly  to  be  covered  with 
blood,  but  the  Major  surrendered  and  took  his  place  in  the  ranks. 

Obaldia  was  looking  out  of  the  window  over  them,  and  I 
asked  him  to  give  directions  for  my  admission,  which  he  did. 
I  entered,  and  learned  that  Melo  had  offered  Obando  the  dicta- 
torship ;  he  had  consulted  with  his  cabinet,  and  refused.  The 
message  which  that  aid  brought  to  Jiron  was  to  hold  the  Pres- 
ident and  cabinet  prisoners.  He  refused,  and  now  he  was  a 
prisoner  without  and  I  within.  Great  confusion  prevailed  in 
the  palace.  No  one  was  seated ;  no  one  long  remained  in  the 
same  room. 

I  obtained  my  release  without  difficulty  and  with  little  de- 
lay. I  went  to  the  Senora  de  Obaldia,  and  conducted  her  to 
the  boarding-place  of  Mr.  Green,  our  minister.  We  went  by  a 
back  street,  but  no  one  interrupted  us.  Others  also  had  taken 
refuge  there,  and  the  house  of  every  minister  and  consul  had  the 
flag  flying,  and  persons  and  jewels  found  protection  in  them. 
It  will  be  observed  in  all  this  that  not  a  drop  of  blood  was 
shed. 

I  heard  afterward  that  Major  Jiron  would  have  been  "  blown 
through"  but  for  the  presence  of  a  foreigner,  who  it  was  feared 
might  be  endangered  in  the  melee.  With  all  due  respect  for  the 


560  NEW   GRANADA. 

Major,  I  consider  his  seizure,  his  resistance,  and  his  danger  as 
all  a  farce  that  I  had  the  pleasure  of  witnessing.  Why  were 
not  the  cabinet  secured  at  the  same  time  with  other  important 
men?  What  was  the  president  doing  all  night?  At  a  later 
hour  the  secretaries  were  carried  to  secure  prisons,  the  president 
detained  a  professed  prisoner  in  his  palace,  and  the  vice-presi- 
dent set  at  liberty.  He  immediately  took  refuge  under  the 
stars  and  stripes. 

I  could  mention  a  theory  that  would  explain  every  thing, 
even  to  the  liberation  of  Obaldia,  but  it  might  be  unjust.  It  is  a 
little  singular,  but  Herrera,  the  Designado,  was  also  summoned 
to  that  meeting  of  the  cabinet.  Instead  of  complying  with  the 
message,  he  immediately  took  refuge  at  the  American  legation. 
Had  he  gone  to  the  palace,  Melo  would  have  had  every  vestige 
of  executive  power — president,  vice-president,  Designado,  and 
all  the  ministers  in  his  power  at  once.  Had  he  secured  the 
Designado,  it  is  not  improbable  that  the  vice-president  would 
have  been  detained  with  the  rest. 

Melo  assumed  the  dictatorship  before  night,  "having  waited 
in  vain  for  Obando  to  change  his  mind."  I  called  on  him  to 
obtain  liberty  for  some  useless  persons  seized  last  night.  He 
assured  me  that  orders  had  already  been  given  to  set  them  at 
liberty.  Coarse  shirts  and  ruanas  were  in  great  request.  Few 
coats  were  seen  in  the  streets,  and  those  were  worn  by  foreign- 
ers. Sudden  friendships  were  formed  by  old  political  antago- 
nists, now  in  common  danger. 

Some  sudden  changes  of  opinion  must  have  occurred.  The 
Orejon,  whose  portrait  graces  page  127,  came  in  town  to-day, 
and  affected  to  be  quite  pleased  with  the  new  order  of  things. 
He  rode  home  shouting,  Viva  la  revolucion!  When  he  got 
there,  he  found  that  every  horse  and  mule  capable  of  bearing 
saddle  or  enjalma  had  been  carried  off  for  the  service  of  the  glo- 
rious cause. 

I  see,  too,  that  my  good  landlady  Margarita  is  rather  preju- 
diced against  cachacos,  but  has  ordered  the  cajera  to  give  mod- 
erate credit  to  any  wearers  of  ruanas.  I  must  not,  however, 
charge  her  with  a  sudden  conversion  entirely.  Her  contempt 
for  fops,  who  spend  freely  and  pay  slacldy,  has  long  since  at- 
tracted my  attention.  One  of  these,  who  is  courting  a  girl  in 


THE  NEW  GOVERNMENT.  561 

a  house  opposite  ours,  had  at  one  time  so  many  drinks  of  brandi 
scored  against  him  at  our  tienda  that  he  ceased  to  patronize  it. 
While  chatting  one  evening  with  his  lady,  he  was  surprised  at 
the  entrance  of  our  cajera,  who  "  presented  the  respects  of  La 
Sefiora  Margarita,  and  advised  him  to  pay  his  brandy-bill,  or 
wear  his  hat  with  a  borboquejo,  as  otherwise  the  Seiaora  would 
one  day  seize  it  off  his  head."  He  squared  up  that  night* 

Melo  has  put  forth  an  organic  decree.  All  such  notices  are 
made  by  bando /  that  is,  sending  a  civilian,  a  drum,  and  a  squad 
of  soldiers  to  various  street-corners,  where  the  civilian  reads  the 
proclamation  or  decree.  Among  other  things,  I  perceive  that 
Melo  proclaims  New  Granada  a  Catholic  nation  again.  It  will 
not  save  him. 

The  great  business  is  recruiting.  All  persons  are  invited  to 
enroll  in  the  national  guard,  and  those  who  neglect  to  do  so  are 
seized  and  incorporated  into  the  standing  army  at  once.  Mar- 
ketmen  come  and  go  unmolested,  for  Bogota  must  eat.  A  line 
of  sentinels,  posted  round  the  city,  let  in  all  who  come,  and  let 
out  those  that  have  a  pass  from  Obregon,  Melo's  second.  Now 
and  then  a  Congressman  or  other  person  who  would  not  be  per- 
mitted to  leave  runs  off  in  the  night  through  the  fields.  In 
this  way  they  hope  to  get  up  a  force  to  put  down  the  Dictator. 
Herrera  escaped  on  Wednesday  night. 

Obregon  addressed  notes  to  the  foreign  representatives,  who 
replied,  generally,  that  it  was  their  duty  to  maintain  friendly  re- 
lations with  the  government  de  facto,  without  taking  part  in 
domestic  controversies.  Obregon  speaks  English,  so  that  our 
charge  had  no  need  of  an  interpreter.  All  the  other  embassa- 
dors  but  ours  always  speak  Spanish. 

I  could  not  find  Samper  after  he  hid  till  too  late  to  call  on 
him.  No  one,  perhaps,  besides  him,  was  in  so  much  danger  as 
Murillo.  I  carried  various  notes  between  him  and  his  wife; 
one  of  them  dropped  on  the  floor  as  I  was  talking  with  one  of 
Melo's  officers,  who  politely  handed  it  to  me  without  looking  at 
it.  All  after  that  went  couched  in  terms  of  a  love  intrigue. 

What  was  Obando's  position  all  this  while  ?  Professedly  he 
was  a  prisoner.  I  do  not  think  he  was.  He  was  not  kept 
closely,  as  were  the  secretaries.  I  readily  obtained  admission 
to  him,  but  to  their  prison  with  great  difficulty.  They  could 

NN 


562  NEW   GRANADA. 

hold  no  private  interviews,  and  were  not  allowed  to  write.  No 
soldier  or  guard  intruded  on  Obando's  privacy ;  nay,  the  very 
window  by  which  Bolivar  escaped  remained  unguarded. 

There  was  a  considerable  quantity  of  money  expected  soon 
up  the  river,  and  it  behooved  the  Dictator  to  extend  his  field  of 
operations ;  so  he  sent  detachments  to  Mesa,  to  Facatativa, 
and  to  Guaduas.  The  troops  guarding  the  Presidio  at  Mesa 
retired  before  superior  numbers.  The  detachment  to  Guaduas, 
meeting  no  opposition,  went  on  to  Pescaderias,  opposite  Honda. 
The  Gobernador  of  Mariquita,  Mateo  Viana,  was  at  the  Honda, 
trying  to  muster  men  enough  to  resist  their  crossing.  The 
boats  were  detained  on  the  west  side  while  he  was  making  the 
attempt.  It  failed,  and  he  retired,  leaving  Melo's  emissary  to 
cross  at  leisure ;  but  the  money  came  only  to  Mompos,  and  re- 
turned to  wait  for  more  quiet  times. 

Melo  must  have  means  as  well  as  men.  There  was  not  a 
large  sum  in  the  treasury  when  he  seized  on  it.  Forced  con- 
tributions were  resorted  to,  and  sometimes  with  great  cruelty. 
It  was  for  this  purpose,  or  some  other,  that  an  English  citizen, 
Mr.  Logan,  was  seized.  One  consequence  of  this,  to  our  nation- 
al honor,  must  not  be  passed  by. 

A  guard  conducting  Mr.  Logan  was  passing  the  American 
legation,  then  in  charge  of  Mr.  John  A.  Bennet,  as  Mr.  Green 
had  returned  home.  Mr.  Logan  sprang  into  Mr.  Bennet's  door. 
It  was  at  once  closed.  Soon  after,  the  legation  was  stormed 
while  our  flag  was  flying  over  it.  The  door  was  riddled  with 
balls.  Mr.  Logan,  wishing  to  save  Mr.  Bennet's  life,  went  out 
and  surrendered. 

Mr.  Bennet  demanded  of  Melo  the  punishment  of  the  assail- 
ants. All  his  reward  was,  that  he  had  to  remain  in  constant 
peril  of  his  life,  and  unable  to  escape  from  Bogota  till  Melo  fell. 
He  demanded  again  of  the  restored  government  that  the  crim- 
inals be  tried  and  shot.  Had  this  demand  been  enforced  by  a 
vleet  off  Cartagena  till  the  miscreants  had  paid  in  their  own  per- 
jons  the  penalty,  I  conjecture  that  it  would  in  the  end  save 
more  lives  of  innocent  American  citizens  than  it  would  have  cost 
of  reckless  outlaws,  who,  because  armed  with  national  muskets, 
feel  freed  from  individual  responsibility.  In  due  time,  another 
rewarded  politician  took  the  place  of  Mr.  Green,  and  the  affair 


AMEEICAN   FLAG  INSULTED.  563 

was  compromised  by  the  government  paying  Mr.  Bennet  for 
the  damage  done  his  door,  and  offering  him  an  apology  for  the 
insult  of  fanning  him  with  bullets. 

But  I  must  return  to  my  history.  The  most  reliable  part  of 
the  country  for  the  constitutional  authority  was  the  north.  In 
Cipaquira  was  a  detachment  of  the  army  schooled  to  Melo's 
purposes.  There  were  also  some  conspirators  in  Tunja,  but  the 
dense,  industrious  population  of  these  cold  provinces  were  true 
to  order.  General  Herrera  escaped  to  Choconta,  and  com- 
menced the  exercise  of  executive  powers  on  the  21st  of  April, 
regarding  Obando  and  Obaldia  as  prisoners  in  Bogota.  He  ap- 
pointed General  Franco  commander-in-chief.  On  the  19th  of 
May,  Franco  rashly  attacked  Cipaquira,  fought  bravely,  and 
died.  General  Buitrago  led  the  forces,  over  4000  in  number, 
out  to  the  northern  end  of  the  Sabana,  beyond  Cipaquira,  where 
Melo  fell  upon  them  with  800  veterans,  and  annihilated  them. 
The  Designado  was  a  fugitive  on  the  plain,  with  victorious  ene- 
mies in  front  and  rear.  He  escaped  through  the  wilds  of  the 
west  to  the  Magdalena. 

Nor  did  things  wear  a  better  aspect  at  the  south.  No  good 
could  of  course  be  expected  of  Antonio  Mateus,  gobernador  of 
Cauca.  He  had  800  men,  but  found  no  opportunity  of  doing 
mischief  with  them.  In  Popayan  the  revolution  was  nine  days 
earlier  than  at  Bogota,  but  was  promptly  put  down  for  the  time. 
Again,  from  the  16th  to  the  21st  of  May,  the  friends  of  Melo 
had  entire  possession  of  Popayan,  when  they  lost  it  after  a  se- 
vere battle.  In  Cali  the  battle  lasted  two  days  in  the  streets, 
and  the  conspirators  capitulated.  In  Antioquia  the  movement 
was  soon  put  down,  but  at  the  cost  of  the  life  of  the  Goberna- 
dor PnLon. 

Julio  Arboleda,  president  of  the  Senate,  took  refuge  at  the 
Danish  legation  till  he  could  escape  from  Bogota  to  Honda. 
This  place  he  fortified,  disinterring  certain  old  cannon,  which, 
had  they  been  fired,  would  have  been  dangerous  to  some  one. 
Threatened  here  by  Melo's  troops,  he  suddenly  attacked  300  of 
them  in  Guaduas  with  less  than  100,  and  routed  them  utterly  at 
the  point  of  the  bayonet.  There  seems  to  me  some  analogy  be- 
tween this  transaction  and  the  capture  of  the  Hessians  at  Tren- 
ton. Each  was  the  first  dawn  of  ultimate  success. 


564  NEW   GRANADA. 

After  this  he  established  himself  at  Guatequi,  on  the  eastern 
bank  of  the  Magdalena,  about  a  day's  journey  below  the  mouth 
of  the  Coello.  Here  he  collected  men  and  boats,  so  as  readily 
to  descend  the  river,  and  defend  any  point  more  easily  than  Melo 
could  attack  it.  In  virtue  of  this  defense,  Congress  assembled 
at  Ibague,  and  not  at  Ocana,  as  had  been  at  first  intended.  Al- 
most their  first  act,  27th  of  September,  was  to  suspend  Obando 
from  the  presidency.  As  Vice-president  Obaldia  had  now  es- 
caped from  Bogota,  the  executive  power  had  passed  from  the 
hands  of  Herrera  the  Designado  to  his. 

Before  this,  Arboleda  had  defeated  detachments  of  Melo's 
troops  at  Anapoima  and  Anolaima,  and  on  the  llth  of  Septem- 
ber the  army  of  the  executive  occupied  La  Mesa.  Here  the 
forces  gathered  from  the  Valley  of  the  Cauca,  and  the  whole 
were  under  the  command  of  ex-President  Lopez.  Some  heavy 
pieces  of  artillery,  brought  by  Arboleda,  made  part  of  their  de- 
fenses. A  serious  discussion  took  place  at  Tena  whether  to 
spike  them,  or  try  to  take  them  up  to  the  Sabana.  The  Anti- 
oquenos  were  permitted  to  make  the  trial,  and  they  succeeded. 

In  the  previous  assaults  on  Bogota,  it  had  been  strongly  de- 
fended at  the  crossing  of  the  Bogota,  which  runs  along  a  few 
miles  west  of  it  through  marshy  ground,  a  terrible  moat  to  be 
passed  in  the  face  of  the  enemy.  Here,  doubtless,  Melo  had 
arranged  for  the  decisive  battle,  like  those  of  Santuario  and 
Culebrera. 

In  this  he  was  not  to  be  gratified ;  the  troops  of  Congress 
crossed  the  stream  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  Falls  of 
Tequendama.  The  cannon  seem  to  have  crossed  below  the 
falls,  and  the  heroic  effort  of  the  sons  of  Antioquia  appears  to 
have  ended -in  placing  them  in  the  wagon-road  from  the  coal- 
mines of  Cincha,  mentioned  on  page  274. 

Melo  can  not  guard  the  immense  circuit  of  the  cornice  of  the 
plain.  Expecting  the  enemy  at  Barro  Blanco,  or  by  the  more 
northern  ascent  from  Anolaima,  the  pass  at  the  Hacienda  of  Te- 
quendama is  in  the  hands  of  his  enemies  before  he  is  aware. 
They  are  advancing  past  Soacha,  and  up  the  east  side  of  the 
Bogota.  The  first  point  where  there  is  any  hope  of  resisting 
t'aem  is  at  the  River  Boza.  He  met  them  at  the  bridge  of 
Boza,  which  we  passed  on  page  273. 


MARCH  UPON  BOGOTA.  565 

* 

Lopez  was  at  Barro  Blanco  with  800  men  when  he  saw  the 
hopes  of  the  nation  crushed  at  Cipaquira  and  Tiquiza  in  May. 
Now,  as  he  stood  at  Boza  to  deliver  up  the  command  of  a  nu- 
merous host  to  General  Herran,  all  eyes  were  turned  to  the  north 
with  hope.  Mosquera  was  coming.  He  had  landed  on  the 
coast  early  in  May  for  commercial  purposes,  but  was  at  the  ear- 
liest opportunity  appointed  to  a  command  by  the  Designado. 
He  had  advanced  through  Ocana  and  the  northern  provinces  to- 
ward Bogota,  not  without  reverses,  but  increasing  in  strength 
as  he  advanced.  My  friend  Jiron  had  been  defeated  at  Pam- 
plona, and  Melo  had  no  troops  north  of  Cipaquira.  These,  too, 
had  to  retire,  and  the  sole  chance  for  the  Dictator  was  to  defeat 
one  of  the  two  divisions  before  their  union. 

Leaving  the  capital  entirely  unguarded,  as  Mosquera  kept  too 
far  off  with  his  smaller  force,  the  Dictator  marched  with  all  liis 
troops  to  meet  Herran,  now  within  five  miles  of  Bogota.  They 
fought  on  22d  November,  1854.  Long  and  fierce  was  the  com- 
bat between  despairing  veterans  and  superior  numbers  fighting 
in  a  better  cause.  The  day  was  decided  by  that  heavy  artil- 
lery brought  from  Honda  with  so  much  labor  as  to  have  made 
the  transport  of  it  almost  a  piece  of  folly. 

So  they  advanced  to  Tres  Esquinas,  a  spot  where,  in  the 
southwest  corner  of  our  Plan  of  Bogota,  three  streams  and  four 
roads  seem  to  radiate.  A  detachment  of  Melo's  best  troops 
here  availed  themselves  of  a  bend  in  the  road,  deep  ditches,  and 
thick  walls  of  tapias,  to  offer  a  vain  resistance  to  the  cautious 
advance  of  Herran  the  next  day.  Castro  led  them,  but  here 
again  they  met  the  fatal  artillery,  were  defeated,  and  many  of 
them  taken  prisoners. 

Shall  Bogota  be  attacked  instantly  ?  The  military  men  ad- 
vised the  measure ;  Obaldia  and  the  ministers  feared  to  risk  too 
much  on  it.  Mosquera  would  soon  advance,  and,  let  Melo  in- 
trench himself  as  he  would,  the  result  was  certain.  A  repulse 
of  either  division  might  drive  both  armies  from  the  Plain  before 
their  junction. 

Unhappy  Bogota !  There  may  be  found  nuns  now  living  who, 
from  their  belfries,  have  seen  the  fate  of  the  capital  decided  by 
fire,  and  thunder,  and  blood,  four  times  before.  It  was  stormed 
in  December,  1812,  by  Baraya,  who  was  repulsed ;  stormed  and 


566  NEW  GRANADA. 

I 

carried  by  Bolivar  in  December,  1814 ;  lost  at  the  battle  of  San- 
tuario,  27th  August,  1830,  and  saved  by  that  of  Culebrera,  28th 
October,  1840 ;  but  never  since  the  city  was  founded  has  it 
seen,  and  never  may  it  see,  a  scene  like  that  of  3d  and  4th  De- 
cember, 1854! 

On  the  2d  of  December  Mosquera  was  at  Chapinero,  just  be- 
yond the  northern  limits  of  our  Plan  of  Bogota.  The  next  day, 
at  noon,  the  troops  of  the  Dictator  were  vainly  contending  with 
the  vanguard  of  Herran  at  the  suburb  of  Las  Cruces,  in  the  op- 
posite extremity  of  the  city.  Step  by  step  the  besieged  retired, 
till  at  midnight  they  were  making  their  stand  at  San  Agustin 
and  San  Bartolome.  For  fifteen  long  hours  they  lose  now  a 
foot  and  now  a  yard,  now  a  gun  and  now  a  tower,  and  the  re- 
sistless foe  was  descending  upon  them  from  above  the  palace. 

Nor  is  Mosquera  idle.  He  has  carried  San  Diego ;  he  is 
pressing  up  to  Las  Nieves,  while  Melo's  head-quarters  are  at 
the  barracks  of  San  Francisco.  Eastward  the  mountain  hedges 
him  in ;  to  the  west  the  Sabana  is  in  the  possession  of  the  forces 
of  the  Vice-president.  Shut  in  thus,  the  Plaza  of  San  Francisco 
is  filled  with  his  troops,  crowding  in  over  the  bridge  from  the 
south,  while  at  length  Mosquera  has  carried  La  Tercera. 

But  as  the  last  moment  approached,  and  the  end  had  become 
inevitable,  the  country  lost  a  man  whose  life  was  worth  as  much 
as  the  death  of  ten  like  Melo.  The  Designado  Herrera,  when 
Obaldia  assumed  the  executive  functions,  became  a  mere  gener- 
al, inferior  in  rank  to  Mosquera,  whom  his  own  decree  had  raised 
to  the  command,  and  under  whose  commands  he  now  fought. 
He  who  had  been  the  unsuccessful  candidate  at  Obando's  elec- 
tion, and  who  nevertheless  had  been  placed  second  after  him — 
who  had  been  true  to  the  executive  in  all  revolutions,  and  had 
fought  against  Herran  and  Mosquera,  Lopez  and  Obando,  now 
shed  his  blood  for  the  cause  of  constitutional  authority  in  the 
streets  of  Bogota. 

But  now  a  dreadful  sound  is  in  the  Dictator's  ears.  It  is  a 
loud  peal  from  the  Cathedral  bells,  announcing  that  the  Plaza 
is  lost  and  gained  ;  nay,  in  the  Calle  Real  a  cannon  is  so  plant- 
ed as  to  bear  upon  the  Barracks  of  San  Francisco.  The  revo- 
lution is  at  its  last  gasp  at  the  very  spot  where  I  had  seen  its 
birth  in  the  bochinche  of  Good  Friday.  Now  his  troops  arc 


THE  NEXT  ADMINISTRATION.  567 

crying  that  this  must  have  an  end.  Desperate  and  almost  be- 
side himself,  he  sends  an  officer  to  Mosquera  offering  to  surren- 
der if  only  his  life  is  spared.  Mosquera  gives  his  word — inju- 
diciously, perhaps,  but  it  never  will  be  broken.  The  war  is  at 
an  end. 

Ere  the  diligent  reader  shall  have  reached  this  paragraph,  he 
may  have  heard  of  the  election  of  a  new  president  of  New 
Granada.  It  will  be  one  of  three  persons  before  mentioned. 
If  it  be  T.  C.  Mosquera,  a  scene  of  bright  hopes  of  future  pros- 
perity opens  on  us.  If  Mariano  Ospina,  our  only  fear  will  be 
priestly  domination.  But  if  Manuel  Morillo  succeed,  as  he 
probably  must,  then  the  land  must  be  prepared  to  bear  all  that 
a  zealous,  truly  patriotic,  but  rash  and  ill  judged  experimenter 
can  inflict.  But  a  happier  future  awaits  her ;  soon  let  it  come ! 


APPENDIX, 


I.  GLOSSARY. 

SPANISH  words,  in  their  Peninsular  acceptation,  have  been  systematically  ex- 
cluded from  the  preceding  pages.  The  words  occurring  there  and  below  are  of 
Indian  origin,  or  else,  being  Spanish,  are  used  in  a  different  sense  from  that  given 
i  in  dictionaries,  or  applied  to  objects  unknown  in  the  temperate  zone. 

The  PRONUNCIATION  of  the  Spanish  language  is  the  easiest  possible.  It  is  read- 
ily learned,  and  none  should  shrink  from  it  who  have  any  occasion  to  use  it. 

ACCENT. — Two  general  rules  include  all  words  in  which  the  accent  is  not  in- 
variably written  over  the  word :  1.  Words  ending  in  a  vowel  or  diphthong  have 
the  accent  on  the  penult,  as  Orinoco,  2.  Words  ending  in  any  other  consonant 
than  s  added  to  form  the  plural,  are  accented  on  the  last,  as  Madrid.  All  such 
words  are  written  below  with  the  grave  accent,  to  indicate  that  the  accent  is  not 
usually  to  be  written.  All  exceptions  to  these  rules  are  written  here  and  every 
where  with  the  acute  accent,  as  in  Bolivar,  Panama. 

CONSONANTS  have  the  same  power  as  in  English,  except 

C  before  e  and  i  has  the  sound  of  s  lisped,  or  th  in  thin ; 

Z  has  this  same  sound  always ;  neither  ever  sounds  like  s. 

Ch  (reckoned  by  the  Spanish  as  one  letter)  has  always  the  same  sound  as  in 
child. 

D  at  the  end  of  words  (and  by  some  in  the  middle)  is  pronounced  like  th  in 
them. 

G  before  e  and  i  has  the  sound  of  h  in  hat . 

J  always  has  the  power  of  h  in  hat. 

X  never  occurs  in  modern  orthography  except  as  ks ;  it  had  the  power  of  h 
in  hat. 

H  is  always  silent. 

LI  (one  letter)  sounds  like  Hi  in  million,  which  they  would  write  millon. 

N  like  ni  in  banio,  which  they  write  bano. 

Qu  before  e  and  i  like  k,  but 

Qu  before  a  and  o,  and  qu  before  e  and  t,  as  in  English. 

Rr  (one  letter),  a  very  strong  ?• — an  absolute  rattle  of  the  tongue. 

VFdoes  not  occur,  and  k  rarely  is  found. 

VOWELS  have  but  one  invariable  sound  each : 

A  like  a  in  father. 

E  like  e  in  they. 

O  like  o  in  no. 

U  like  oo  in  pool. 

DIPHTHONGS  are  so  accounted  only  in  rules  of  accent  and  versification  : 

Au  sounds  like  ou  in  found. 

Ai  like  i  in  pine. 

Numbers  below  indicate  pages  in  the  body  of  the  work  ;  if  preceded  byf,  they 
refer  to  the  illustrations. 


570 


APPENDIX. 


Ac&quia,  aqueduct,  115. 

Achicdria,  a  flower,  125. 

Achiote,  arnatto,  141. 

Achipulla,  a  plant,  280. 

Achira,  a  leaf,  148. 

Acuapar,  sandbox-tree,  4T. 

Addbe,  unburnt  bricks,  181. 

Ad  uana,  custom-house,  29. 

Advocacion,  a  personality  of  the  Virgin,  186. 

Aguacate,  a  fruit,  410. 

Ahijada,  goddaughter,  181. 

Ahijado,  godson,  181. 

Ajiaco,  a  steic,  120. 

AliiniOda,  a  tcalfe  bordered  with  poplars,  164. 

Albarca,  a  sandal,  35,  /.  292. 

Alcabala,  taz  on  saies,  258. 

Alcaide,  jailer,  38. 

Alcalde,  a  district  officer,  37. 

Alcaldia,  aw  o^fce,  3T. 

Aldea,  an  imperfect  district,  37. 

Alfandoque,  a  rattte,  124,  /.  441. 

Alfanddque,  o  candy,  124. 

Alf6rez  (ensign),  patron,  546. 

Alma  bendita,  a  ghost,  340. 

Almendron,  palm-almond,  400. 

Almibar,  strap,  122. 

Almofr&z,  a  bag,  289,  /.  288. 

Almohadillado,  mule-ladders,  845. 

Almojavana,  a  cake,  473. 


Altoziino,  a  platform,  150. 

Alvdrja,  pea,  143. 

Anda,  a  stage,  545. 

Angelito  (h'ttZe  angel),  dead  child,  446. 

Anis,  a  plant  and'seed,  56. 

Anigado,  a  drink,  56. 

Anon,  a  fruit,  502. 

Apellldo,  surname,  106. 

Ara,  altar-stone,  187. 

Arandela  (flounce),  ruff,  145. 

Arepa,  corn-cake,  372. 

Arracacha,  em  escwtent  root,  160. 

Arretranca,  breeching,  133,  /.  132. 

Arriero  (muleteer),  an  ant,  64. 

Arroba,  a  quarter,  487. 

Arrdz,  nee,  500. 

Arrozal,  rice-field,  500. 

Atajada,  family  of  a  horse,  430. 

Atascadtro,  mud-hole,  345. 

Atillo,  a  Mae  case,  45. 

Atraso,  backwardness,  379. 

Avispa,  tflosp,  hornet,  90. 

Avispero,  nest  o/  toosp  or  hornet,  90. 

Azucar,  loaf  sugar,  122. 

Azucuna  (J%),  <m  orchid,  416. 

Badoa,  a  fruit,  130. 

Balija,  mail-trunk,  259. 

Bambtico,  a  dance,  440,  /.  441. 

Banco,  a  bench,  425. 

Uanda,  tend  on  a  river,  19. 

Bando,  proclamation,  561. 

Bandola,  «?waU  guitar,  124,  /.  441. 

Banquillo,  sea<  to  6e  shot  on,  164. 

Baquiano,  an  expert,  49. 

Barbuquejo,  hat-string,  133,  /.  132. 

Barra,  audience,  257. 

Barrigon,  a  deformed  person,  76. 

Barrio,  ward,  154. 

Batata,  sweet  potato,  471. 

Bayeton,  a  flannel  garment,  32. 

Beata,  a  devotee,  193. 

Beaterio,  a  religious  house,  516. 

Bejuco,  a  climber,  417. 

B6atia,  animal  for  traveling,  45. 

Bija,  arnatto,  141. 

Bochica,  a,  fabulous  personage,  126. 

Bochinche,  n'ot,  553. 

Bodega,  fcoW  ;  store-house,  55,  92. 

Bodeguoro,  store-keeper,  92. 


B6ga,  boatman,  39. 
Bollo,  a  cafce,  108. 
Bolsa,  purse,  101. 
Bolsillo,  pocket,  101. 
Bongo,  a  ooat,  39. 
Boqueron,  gorge,  218. 
Borrachero,  a  plant,  181. 
B6veda,  wjw»;  tom6,  60. 
Buitre,  a  bz'rd,  495. 
Bunde,  a  dance,  479. 

Cabecera,  capital  of  canton,  37. 

Cabdza  (head),  seat  of  district  government,  37. 

Cabildo,  district  Legislature,  37. 

Cabuya,  a  plant;  its  fibre,  246. 

Cacao,  chocolate-tree,  88. 

Cach&co,  stylish  fellow,  146. 

Cachimona,  a  game,  377. 

Caiman,  a  reptile,  71. 

Cajera,  salesieoman,  149. 

Calabaza  (fruit),  calabazo  (dis/(),  calabash,  74. 

Calentano,  loidander,  246. 

Calle,  Wocfc  o/  a  street ;  tAe  street,  154 

Callejon,  deep  road,  214. 

Cdmara  provincial,  provincial  Legislature,  37. 

Camarin,  image  closet,  187. 

Camisa,  wnder  garment,  136,  /.  136. 

Camison,  gown;  coarse  robe,  59,  /.  69. 

Canalite,  a  paddle,  39, /.  70. 

Canape1,  a  seat,  425. 

Candola,  a  coaZ,  170. 

Can61o  (cinnamon-tree),  Winter's  bark,  238. 

Canoa,  trough,  89. 

Candnigo,  prebendary,  194. 

Canton,  a  canton,  37. 

Cana  brava,  a  grass,  71. 

Cafta  dulce,  sugar-cane,  118. 

Canaveral,  cane-field,  118. 

Capellan,  holder  of  a  co.pellan'ia,  419. 

Capellania,  perpetual  claim  on  land,  419. 

Capilla,  chapel,  159. 

Capirote,  a  mask,  545. 

Capitan,  a/sA,  136. 

Caracoli,  cashew-tree,  61. 

Carate,  a  disease,  151. 

Carga,  TnwZe  Zoad,  220.4737  Z6s.  avoird.,  45. 

Carguero,  carrier  of  burdens,  93. 

Carne  de  nienudo,  viscera,  177. 

Carrera,  street,  154. 

Carriel,  a  pouch,  101,  536. 

Cartilla,  primer,  472. 

Casa  (house),  a  group,  183. 

Casa  alta,  two-story  house,  62. 

Casa  baja,  one-story  house,  63. 

Casa  claustrada,  Aowse  teit A  court,  62,  /.  130. 

Cazabe,  a  fcind  o/  oread,  62. 

C6dro,  a  tree,  389. 

Cedron,  a  tree,  457. 

Ctiiba,  a  tree,  506. 

C6nso,  an  annuity,  419. 

Centimo,  a  cent,  119. 

Cerda,  Aatr  rope,  458. 

Cerozo,  cherry-tree,  201. 

Chambimbe,  soap-berry,  469. 

Champsln,  a  boat,  81,  /.  80. 

Chapeton,  native  of  Spain,  168. 

Chaqueta,  a  garment,  193. 

Charco,  a  deep  spot,  398. 

Chasqui,  a  •messenger,  255. 

Chicha,  a  drink,  144. 

Cbinche,  bed-bug,  49. 

Cliircute,  agannent,  136,  f.  136. 

Chirimoya,  a  fruit,  502. 

Chi-to-o!  stop/  129. 

Chulo,  a  oird,  230. 

Chusque,  a  grass,  217. 

Cigarrillo,  paper  cigar,  171. 

Cilicio,  an  article  for  self-torture,  189. 

Cincha,  j/frtA  o/  saddle,  424. 

Cipr6s,  a  tree,  389. 

Cirial,  candle-pole,  114. 


APPENDIX. 


571 


Citolegia,  a  reading-book,  472. 

Cocor,  to  cook,  106. 

Cocli,  a  bird,  525. 

Coco,  cocoanut,  72. 

Cocui  and  cocuyo,  a  luminous  bug,  110. 

Cofradia,  a  fraternity,  189. 

Cohute,  a  rocket,  450, 113. 

Cojin,  stool,  425. 

CojiniHes,  saddle-pockets,  424 

Comadre,  a  relation,  181. 

Compadre,  a  relation,  181. 

Compafleros,  mates,  45. 

Concerted  o,  a  Aired  man,  434 

Condor,  a  bird,  495. 

Condor,  a  coin,  119. 

Congreso,  Congress,  37. 

Contadero,  resting  (counting)  place,  290. 

Contraguasca,  a  second  rope,  432. 

Contramaestre,  mate  o/  a  steam-boat,  55. 

Coraza  (cuirass),  port  o/  a  saddle,  424 

Core,  cftoir  (in  a  cathedral),  194. 

Corona,  a  set  of  prayers,  183. 

Corozo,  a  palm,  474. 

Corpus,  a  festival,  544 

Corral,  j/ard,  428. 

Corredor,  part  of  a  house,  62. 

Correista,  mail-carrier,  259. 

Coser,  to  sew,  106. 

Coto,  firoftre,  116,  /.  820. 

Cotudo,  man  with  goitre,  116. 

Credo,  the  Creed,  398. 

Creciente,  waxing  of  the  moon,  474 

Criollo,  creole,  168. 

Cuaresma,  Lent,  544. 

Cuartel,  oarraefcs,  198. 

Cuartillo,  a  coin,  119. 

Cuarto,  sixteenth  of  a  dime,  119. 

Cucurucho,  a  cap,  546. 

Cuentas,  beads,  183,  /.  193. 

Cuja,  bunk,  200. 

Cura  (masc.),  pastor,  410. 

Cura  (fern.),  a  fruit,  4ia 

Curi,  a  'mammal,  447. 

Curuba,  a/r«i«,  122. 

Custodia,  a  wafer-box,  187. 

Demanda,  writ,  409. 
Derrumbe,  land-slide,  344 
Destroncado,  used  up,  52. 
Disciplina  (whip),  a  plant,  439. 
Distrito,  t   dMrirt  37 

Distrito  parroquial,f  7 
Dominico,  a  fruit,  88. 
Dulce,  sweetmeats,  73. 
Duro,  doZtar,  119. 

Echar  agua,  toy  baptism,  180. 

Embarazada,  pregnant,  477. 

Enaguas,  a  garment,  145. 

Encauchado,  a  garment,  32. 

Encerado,  water-proof  cloth,  44. 

Encomienda,  property  sent  by  mail,  260. 

Enjalma,  pack-saddle,  45. 

Equipaje,  baggage,  241. 

Equis  (i««er  a;),  a  venomous  snake,  498. 

Ermita,  "hermitage,"  214 

Escaflo,  a  bench,  425. 

Escoba  (broom),  a  weed,  474. 

Espadas  (swords),  spades  o/ cords,  124. 

Estimcia,  /eZd,  422. 

Estera,  matting,  40. 

Estola,  a  ftarid,  478. 

Estribo  de  aro,  common  stirrup,  133. 

Estribo  orej6n,  shoe-shaped  stirrup,  133,  /.  132. 

Fiesta  de  toros,  bull-feast,  296, /.  298. 

Fique,  a  ptanf ;  its  fibre,  246. 

Fonda,  eating-house,  97. 

Frailejon,  a  plant,  216. 

Frijol  and  frisol,  6ean,  150. 

Fuerte,  dollar,  119. 

Funda,  hat-cover,  133,  /.  132. 


Funda,  caldron,  350. 
Fuste,  saddle-tree,  424 

Gacha,  o  ^"or,  144. 
Galapago  (terrapin),  a  saddle,  425. 
Gallinazo,  a  vulture,  230. 
Gancho,  Aoofc,  39. 
Garbanzo,  chick-pea,  143. 
Garrapata,  ticfc,  481. 
Garrapatero,  o  bird,  525. 
Garrote,  strangling  apparatus,  164 
Garza,  a  bird,  136. 
Gobernacion,  an  office,  87. 
Gobernador,  an  officer,  37. 
Gobiorno,  national  government,  37. 
Gorra  (cap),  bonnet,  112. 
Granadjlla,  a  fruit,  130. 
Granadilla  de  papel,  a  fruit,  130. 
Grupera,  crupper,  425. 
Guaca,  «  grave,  538. 
Guacamaya,  macaw,  127. 
Gudcharo,  a  Wrd,  264,  812. 
Guaco,  some  plants,  457. 
Guadua,  a  grass,  109. 
Guadual,  thicket  of  gua&ua,  110. 
Guambia,  a  bag,  88,  101. 
Guanabana,  a  fruit,  502. 
Guaquero,  treasure-hunter,  589. 
Guarapo,  a  drink,  107. 
Guaricha,  a  tow  £rirj,  174. 
Guarriiz,  a  drink,  353. 
Guarumo,  a  tree,  87. 
Guasca,  hide  rope,  425. 
Guatin,  a  mammal,  447. 
Guayaba,  guava,  72. 
Guayabal,  guava  thicket,  72. 
Guayabo,  guava-tree,  72. 
Guayacan,  a  ows/t,  289. 
Guazimo,  a  tree,  439. 
Guin^o,  banana,  88. 
Guisado,  a  dis/i  o/  meat,  473. 

Haba,  TTiwdsor  6ean,  150. 
Hada,  a  supernatural  being,  840. 
Harton,  a  plantain,  87. 
Hisopo,  a  sprinkler,  192. 
H6rca,  a  fork;  gibbet,  429. 
Ho?picio,  almshouse,  162. 
Hostia,  a  wafer,  113. 
H6yo,  hydrographic  basin,  235. 
Huevos  tibios,  boiled  eggs,  149. 
Hule,  oil-cloth,  288. 

Icaco  and  hicaco,  a  /rwit,  73. 
Inocente,  April-fool,  304 
Iraca,  a  plant,  36,  400. 

Jaquima,  halter,  183,  /.  132. 

Jefe  politico,  an  officer,  37. 

Jefetura,  an  office,  37. 

Jipijapa,  a  plant,  63. 

Jipatera,  a  disease,  76. 

Judia,  6eaw,  150. 

Juez  letrftdo,  professional  judge,  406. 

Jurados,  jwri/,  407. 

Lazo,  rope ;  noose,  45,  425,  /.  426. 

L6gua,  a  mea.sitre,  47,  594. 

Lengua  de  Vaca  (cow's  tongue),  a  plant,  68. 

Lenteja,  lentil,  150. 

Lim6n  dulce,  a  fruit,  74 

Llano  (plain),  cleared  land,  486. 

Llave,  slip-knot,  426. 

Loteria,  o  owne,  306. 

Machete,  a  knife,  17,  /.  70. 
Macho  (male),  mule,  45. 
Madrina,  god-mother,  181. 
Madrono,  a  fruit,  804. 
Mague,  a  plant;  its  pith,  246. 
Mampara,  a  screen,  174. 
Manati,  a  mammal,  46. 


572 


APPENDIX. 


Mingle,  mangrove-tree,  82, 

Mango,  a  fruit,  304 

Minus  muertas,  mortmain,  419. 

Manta,  native  cloth,  619. 

Manteca  (butter),  lard,  56. 

Hantellina,  a  garment,  136,  /.  136. 

Manteo,  priesfs  cloak,  192. 

Maptequilla,  butter,  56. 

Manzanillo,  manchineel-tree,  32. 

Manzanillo,  a  Euphorbiate  bush,  310. 

Masamorra,  a  tind  of  food,  871. 

Matador,  bull-fighter,  265. 

Matraca,  a  rattte,  551. 

Maure,  a  sash,  13T. 

Mayorazgo,  entailment,  419. 

Mayorddmo,  steward,  418. 

Mazdrca,  /ruit  o/  maize  or  chocolate,  88. 

Medio,  a  coin,  119. 

Melado,  sirup  or  molasses,  122. 

Menguante,  leaning  of  the  moon,  474 

Mestizo,  mixed  race,  69,  /.  70. 

Midi,  thin  sirup,  122. 

MitM  de  abejas,  honey,  122. 

Midi  de  purga,  molasses,  122. 

Minorista,  a  priest-boy,  194. 

Mistela,  cordial,  440. 

Mitad,  eighth  of  a  dime,  119. 

Mochila,  a  bag,  101. 

Monddngo,  a  fcind  of  meat,  177. 

Montiifiii.  forest  country,  436. 

M6nte,  tAictet,  436. 

Montura,  saddle,  bridle,  &c.,  425. 

Monuiuentp,  deposit  of  a  wafer,  550. 

Mdro,  fustic,  53. 

Moya,  a  cafce  of  salt,  98. 

Mucura,  an  earthen  vessel,  115. 

Mfila  (a  female  mule),  mule,  45. 

Murcielago,  oat,  140. 

Nacuma,  a  plant,  63. 
Naranjada,  a  drink,  121. 
Nazareno,  a  bearer,  545. 
Neme,  bitumen,  842. 
Nigua,  on  insect,  330. 
Nispero,  a  fruit,  390. 
Ndmbre,  Christian  name,  106. 
Name,  yam,  151. 

Oblspo  (.bishop),  part  of  a  still,  448. 
Oca,  an  esculent  "  root,"  150. 
Olla,  an  earthen  pot,  143. 
Olleta,  chocolate-pot,  143.  • 
Onza  (ounce),  a  coin,  119. 
O-o-is-te !  stop  /  129. 
Oraci6n  (prayer),  dusk,  183. 
Orejdn,  a  clews  o/  men,  132,  /.  132. 
Ornamunto,  altar-dress,  112. 

Padrina,  godmother,  181. 
Padrinazgo,  a  relationship,  181. 
Padrino,  godfather,  181. 
Padrdte,  stud-horse,  480. 
Paica,  worm-seed,  445. 
Paila,  caMron,  466. 
Paja  (8«ra»r),  t/ia/cA,  36. 
Pala,  push-hoe,  487. 
Palanca,  setting-pole,  39. 
Palito,  a  measure,  487. 
Palmiche,  cabbage-palm,  149. 
Palo  b6bo,  tree-fern,  129,  /.  281. 
Pandereta,  tamoon'ne,  440,  /.  441. 
Panela,  coarse  sugar,  122. 
Pafio  de  manos,  towel,  56. 
Panoldn,  a  shaicl,  145. 
Papaya,  papaw,  81. 
Paramentos,  priests'  robes,  112. 
Paramo,  Ai^ft  Zand,  70. 
Parroquia,  parish,  37. 
Pasaje,  ferriage,  94 
Pasero,  ferryman,  94 
Piso,  /errt/,  94 
Paso,  part  o/  a  procession,  545. 


Pastilia,  a  pie,  150. 

Patacon,  slice  of  plantain;  a  coin,  119. 

Patina,  a  plate,  113. 

Patibulo,  execution  place,  164 

Patio,  court,  82. 

Patron,  c/tie/  ooptt,  39. 

Patrona,  mistress,  78. 

Pauji,  a  bird,  127. 

Pava,  a  bird,  495. 

Peaje,  transit  duty,  50. 

Pega-pega,  a  flower,  203. 

Pellon,  a  rug,  188. 

Pe6n,  hired  man,  45. 

Pepino,  cucumber  and  another  fruit,  149. 

Perica,  drunkenness,  453. 

Perico  lijero,  tAe  siotA,  388. 

Perrerista,  vchijiper,  527. 

Perrero,  whip,  527,  /.  288. 

Persignarse,  to  cross  one's  self,  184 

Personero,  prosecuting  attorney,  407. 

Pesebre,  manger,  467. 

Peso,  eip/it  or  ten  dimes,  119. 

Peso  fuerte,  dollar,  119. 

Petaca,  a  box,  45. 

Petacdn,  a  bed-bug,  49. 

Pila,  font;  fountain,  115. 

Piftuela,  a  fruit,  103. 

Pita,  a /ore,  247. 

Pitahaya,  a  fruit,  525. 

Plata  suelta,  change,  106. 

Platanal  and  platanar, 

Platano,  plantain,  87. 

Plaza,  public  square,  35. 

Poltrdna,  easy-chair,  425. 

Pomarosa,  a  fruit,  804 

Poncho,  a  garment,  32. 

Pontazgo,  bridge-toll,  50. 

Popa,  stern,  78. 

Portdn,  /ront  door,  62,  /.  156. 

Posada,  stopping-place,  43. 

Potrero,  pasture,  468. 

Poyo,  a  bench,  49. 

Presidente,  president,  37. 

Pretil,  balustrade,  62. 

Prda,  protc,  82. 

Proceso,  law-suit.,  406. 

Provhicia,  province,  37. 

Puchero,  a  boiled  dish,  149. 

Puerta,  (/ate;  door ;  6ars,  92. 

Puerta  de  golpe,  gote,  92. 

Pu6rta  de  mieericordia,  a  side  door,  156. 

Puerta  de  trancas,  6ars,  92. 

Quereme,  a  flower,  517. 
Quingo,  zigzag,  18. 

Racimo,  bunch  of  fruit,  87. 
Raya,  a  fish,  341. 
Rancho,  shed,  camp,  246. 
Rascadera,  an  esculent,  538. 
Ragpon,  coarse  (haf),  G9. 
Real,  dime,  119. 
Reinosos,  uplanders,  246. 
Reja,  window  bars,  30. 
Rejo,  HIHIKI.  45. 
Relleno,  a  sausage,  120. 
Resbaladdro,  a  slide,  435. 
Resguardo,  reserve,  243. 
Rodeo,  herding,  423. 
Rogacion,  special  festival,  444. 
Rosario,  a  set  of  prayers,  1S3. 
Ruana,  a  garment,  32,  /.  426. 
Rubrica,  part  of  signature,  326, /.  326. 

Sacar,  to  engage  to  dance,  443. 
Sacramento  del  altar,  a  salutation,  291. 
Sacristan,  sexton,  215. 
Sacristia,  vestry,  112. 
Sagrario,  a  li'ttfe  cupboard,  187. 
Sagft,  arrow-root,  146. 
Sal  a,  main  room,  48. 
Salamanqueja,  a  lizard,  35. 


APPENDIX. 


573 


Salchicha,  a  sausage,  120. 
Salvaje,  a  plant,  53. 
Salve,  Hail  Mary,  183. 
Sancdcho,  a  stew,  373. 
Santiguarse,  to  cross  one's  self,  184. 
Saya,  a  skirt,  184. 
Sllla,  arm-chair;  a  saddle,  425. 
Sillero,  bearer,  93,  365,  /.  364. 
Sillon,  saddle-chair,  241,  /.  240. 
Sobre-carga,  a  middle  package,  51. 
Sofa,  sofa,  425. 
S6pa,  soup,  141.- 
Sotacu&llo,  a  erawtf,  65. 
Sotaua,  priests'  dress,  193. 
Sudad6ro,  saddle-blanket,  425. 
Suelta,  »nwiU  money,  106. 
Suspiro  (sfyA),  a  cafce,  472. 

Tabla,  a  cake,  89. 

Tabulate,  cftm'r,  425. 

Talega,  money-bag,  101. 

Tamal,  an  article  of  food,  148. 

Tambo,  a  shed  for  travelers,  365. 

Tapa,  covering,  69, /.  70. 

Tapias,  rammed  earth,  131. 

Tarjado,  incapacitated  horse,  431. 

Tarro,  a  wssei,  109,  /.  386. 

Tasajo,  jerked  beef,  56. 

T6ja,  JiZe,  67. 

Templar,  to  change  climate,  241. 

Tercera,  a  society,  188. 

Tercio,  half  carga,  45. 

Tienda,  sfiop,  48. 

Ti£rra  caliente,  lowlands,  73. 

Tierra  fria,  uplands,  73. 

TiSrra  templada,  middle  lands,  75. 

Tidrras  baldias,  public  domain,  1C',\ 

Tijereto,  a  bird,  524. 


Tinaja,  o  jar,  75. 
Tinajera,  tro<er-pZaee,  115. 
Tinajon,  large  tinaja,  143. 
Tinieblas,  a  ceremony,  550. 
Tiple,  a  musical  instrument,  124. 
Tiza  (chalk),  infusorial  earth,  388. 
Toalla,  totceZ,  56. 
Tocayo,  namesake,  106. 
T61do  (tent),  a  roof,  81. 
Toma !  a  call  to  animals,  433. 
Torbellino  (whirlwind),  a  dance,  443. 
Toreador,  bull-fighter,  299. 
Tortilla,  omelette,  149. 
Totuma,  a  fruit;  a  vessel,  74. 
Trancas,  Mrs,  92. 
Tr6nza,  braid,  69. 
Tribuna,  speaking  desk,  257. 
Trisagio,  a  religious  service,  518. 
Ttilpas,  <7ire«  stones,  56. 
Tuna,  a  fruit,  301. 

Una-gato  (cat-claw),  a  bush,  413. 
Uva  cimarrona,  a  fterr;/,  216. 

Vaca  (coic),  a  huge  bag,  289,  /.  28S. 

Venta,  inn,  119. 

Verdolaga,  purselane,  446. 

Vice-parroquia,  sub-parish,  37. 

Vigilancia,  surveillance,  348. 

Visperas  (vespers),  eve,  183. 

Vueltas  de  la  Virdina,  iwrninflrjpfaccs,  137. 

Yuca,  an  esculent  root,  62. 

Zaguan,  entry,  62. 
Zamarros,  a  garment,  133,  /.  132. 
Zancudo  (to»ijr  legs),  musquito,  72. 
Zapote,  a  fruit-,  390. 
Zaragdza,  a  flower,  535. 


H.  OBSERVATIONS  ON  THE  MAPS. 

The  inconvenience  of  consulting  maps  folded  in  the  book,  and  their  liability  to 
mutilation,  have  induced  the  author  to  limit  the  size  of  the  maps.  Still,  no  im- 
portant town  has  been  omitted  from  them — no  post-town  nor  seat  of  cantonal 
government.  The  appropriate  position  of  every  district  in  the  nation  is  shown 
by  means  of  the  geographical  index  in  Appendix  III.,  which  indicates  the  can- 
ton of  each,  while  the  cabecera  of  every  canton  is  found  on  the  map  with  the  same 
number  attached. 

Small  as  are  the  maps,  unusual  care  has  been  spent  on  them,  and  yet  they 
must  be  far  from  accurate.  No  good  map  of  New  Granada  exists,  to  the  knowl- 
edge of  the  author.  The  best  used  in  this  compilation  is  H.  S.  Tanner's  map  of 
Colombia,  published  in  New  York  in  1828.  Brue's  Colombia  (Paris,  1826),  Acos- 
ta's  New  Granada  (Paris,  1847),  and  Mosquera's  New  Granada  (New  York,  1852), 
have  been  consulted.  A  rude  sketch  of  mail-routes,  prepared  by  Colonel  Agustin 
Codazzi  in  1853,  has  been  used  as  far  as  possible. 

The  coasts  and  coast  towns  have  been  copied  from  admiralty  charts,  kindly 
furnished  by  the  Messrs.  Blunt,  who  have  shown  a  lively  interest  in  promoting 
the  accuracy  of  the  work.  Twenty-four  towns  in  the  provinces  north  of  Bogota 
and  ten  in  that  of  Antioquia  are  fixed  from  observations  of  the  Comision  Coro- 
grafica,  and,  from  the  character  of  Colonel  Codazzi,  may  be  relied  upon  as  unu- 
sually accurate.  They  are  reduced  on  the  assumption  that  Bogota  is  74°  14'  15" 
west  of  Greenwich.  Sixteen  others  are  located  according  to  less  reliable  observa- 
tions. The  remaining  towns  are  from  Codazzi's  sketch,  except  Cienega-de-oro, 
which  is  a  sheer  guess. 

The  rivers  and  mountains  are  still  less  accurate,  as  no  maps  have  the  hydro- 


574 


APPENDIX. 


graphic  basins  correctly  shown.  Besides  a  careful  discussion  of  conflicting  maps, 
the  author  has  availed  himself  of  his  own  observations  and  some  rude  copies  of 
manuscript  maps  made  in  New  Granada.  In  this  severe  task  the  compiler  has 
received  efficient  aid  from  Mr.  J.  Wells,  who  drew  the  maps,  and  Mr.  Charles 
Copley,  who  engraved  them ;  yet  none  of  the  errors  that  shall  be  discovered  can 
be  attributed  to  either :  they  must  be  charged  to  the  imperfection  of  the  mate- 
rials at  present  in  reach. 

The  boundaries  of  the  provinces  can  be  but  imperfectly  ascertained,  nor  is  it 
important,  so  constantly  are  they  changing.  All  my  applications  to  representa- 
tives of  the  Granadan  government  have  been  fruitless,  and  all  the  numerous  and 
important  changes  made  since  1853  have  been  put  down  from  verbal  statements 
of  various  gentlemen  who  happened  to  recollect  most  of  them. 

m.  GEOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 

New  Granada  has  consisted  of  the  following  provinces,  territories,  and  states. 
and  the  cantones  mentioned  under  them  were  extant  as  territorial  subdivisions. 
The  cabecera  of  each  bears  generally  the  name  of  the  canton,  and  in  all  other 
cases  it  is  mentioned.  In  all  cases  the  first  canton  contains  the  capital  of  the 
province.  Abbreviations  are  affixed  to  the  provinces,  and  numbers  to  the  can- 
tones,  for  convenience  of  reference.  In  the  maps  the  names  of  the  provinces  are 
in  CAPITALS,  the  seat  of  provincial  government  in  Roman,  and  the  other  towns 
in  Italic.  The  number  of  each  canton  is  attached  to  its  cabecera. 


8.  San  Andre's. 

4.  Espinal,  cab.  Guamo. 

ANTIOQUIA.    (An.) 

9.  Sincelejo. 

5.  Honda. 

1.  Medellin. 

CASENARE.  (Cs.)  Cop.  Moreno. 

MOCOA  Terr.    (Me.) 

3.  Antioquia. 

1.  Pore,  ca&.  Moreno. 

MOMPOS.    (Mp.) 

4  Marinilla. 

2.  Arauca. 

1.  Mompos. 

5.  Nordeste,  cab.  Amalfi. 

3.  Chire.                      [grande. 

2.  Magangu6. 

6.  Rio  Negro. 

4.  Nunchia,    cab.    Labranza- 

3.  Majagual. 

7.  Salamina,  cab.  Sonson. 

6.  Taguana,  cab.  Zapotosa. 

4.  Simti. 

8.  Santa  Rosa. 

9.  Sopetran. 

CAUCA.    (Cc.)    Cap.  Buga. 

NETVA.    (Nv.) 

1.  Buga. 

1.  Neiva. 

BOGOTA.    (B.) 

2.  Anserma,  cab.  Ans.  Nueva. 

2.  Occidente,  cab.  Yaguara. 

1.  Bogota. 

3.  Cartago. 

3.  Plata. 

2.  C&queza. 

4.  Palmira. 

4.  Puriflcacion. 

3.  Cipaquira. 

5.  Supia. 

6.  Timam'i,  cab.  Garson. 

4.  Choconta. 

6.  Toro. 

6.  Facatativa. 

7.  Tulua. 

OCANA.    (Oe.) 

6.  Funza. 

7.  Fusagasuga. 
8.  Guaduas. 

Cnoc6.   (Ch.)    Cap.  Quibd6. 
1.  Atrato,  cab.  Quibd<5. 

1.  Ocana. 
PAMPLONA.    (Pm.) 

9.  Guatavita. 

2.  San  Juan,  cab.  N6vita. 

1.  Pamplona. 

10.  Mesa. 

2.  Bucaramanga. 

11.  San  Martin,  cab.  Medina. 

ISTMO.      (I.)* 

3.  Concepcion. 

12.  Tocaima. 

1.  Panama. 

4.  Fortoul,  cab.  San  Andrea. 

13.  Ubat6. 

2.  Alanje,  ca6.  David. 

6.  Jiron. 

14  Palma. 

3.  Bocas  del  Toro. 

6.  Malaga. 

BUENAVENTURA.     (B.)     Cap. 

4.  Chagres. 
5.  Chorrera. 

7.  1'iedecuesta. 
8.  Rosario. 

Cali. 

6.  Darien,  cab.  Yavisa. 

9.  Salazar. 

1.  Cali. 

7.  Natii. 

10.  Sanjoa6. 

2.  Raposo,  cab.  Buenaventura. 
3.  Roldanillo. 

8.  Parita. 
9.  Portobello. 

PASTO.     (Ps.) 

10.  Santiago. 

1.  Pasto. 

CARTAGENA.     (Ct) 

11.  Santos.       ,, 

2.  Barbacoas. 

1.  Cartagena. 

12.  Soto,  cab.  Penonom6. 

8.  Ipiales. 

2.  C/irmen. 

13.  Taboga. 

4.  Tumaco. 

3.  Ci6nega-de-oro. 
4.  Corozal. 
5.  Chinu. 

MABIQUITA.  (Mq.)  Cop.Ibague. 
1.  Ibagu6. 

5.  Tuquerres. 
POPAYAN.     (Pp.) 

6.  Lorica. 

2.  Ambalema.                  [rral. 

1.  Popayan. 

7.  Mahates. 

3.  Castrolanna,   cab.  Chapa- 

2.  Caldas,  cab.  Almaguer. 

*  The  legal  name  is  Estado  do  Panama. 

APPENDIX. 


575 


3.  Izcuande. 

4.  Micai,  cab.  Guapi. 

5.  Santander,  cab.  Quilichao. 


BIOHACIIA. 
1.  Eiohacha. 


(Eh.) 


SABANILLA.    (Sb.)     Cap.  Bar- 
ranquilla. 

1.  Barranquilla. 

2.  Sabanalarga. 
8.  Soledad. 

SAN  MAKTIN  Terr.    (Sn.) 
SANTAMAKTA.    (Sm.) 

1.  Santamarta. 

2.  Clenega. 


3.  Plato. 

4.  Soata. 

4.  Remolino. 

5.  Sogamoso. 

5.  Tenerife,  cab.  San  Anto- 

nio. 

TUNJA.     (Tj.) 

SOOOEEO.    (Sc.) 

1.  Tunja. 
2.  Garagoa. 

1.  Socorro. 

3.  Guateque. 

2.  Barichara. 

4.  Leiva. 

3.  Charala. 

5.  Miraflores. 

4.  Jordan,  cab.  Aratoca. 

6.  Ramiriqui,  cab.  Turmeque. 

5.  Oiba. 

6.  Sanjil. 

VALLE  DTJPAE.    (Vd.) 

7.  Zapatoca. 

1.  Valle  Dupar. 

TUTTOAMA.    (Td.)    Cap.  Santa 

2.  Chiriguana. 

Eosa. 

VELEZ.     (Vz.) 

1.  Santa  Rosa. 

1.  Velez. 

2.  Cocui. 

2.  Chiquinquira. 

8.  Ricaurte,  cab.  SativaNorte. 

8.  Moniquira. 

IV.  ALPHABETICAL  LIST  OF  PLACES  IN  NEW  GRANADA. 

The  territorial  divisions  are  indicated  by  having  attached  to  them  their  popu- 
lation in  1853.  The  abbreviations  refer  to  the  provinces,  and  the  number  an- 
nexed, the  cantones  in  the  above  list.  The  remaining  numbers  refer  to  the  pages 
of  this  work.  The  names  of  PROVINCES,  STATES,  and  TERRITORIES  are 
in  LARGE  CAPITALS,  CANTONES  in  SMALL  CAPITALS,  Aldeas  or  imperfect  dis- 
tricts in  Italics,  Districts  in  Roman  letter,  with  the  population  attached.  Lakes 
and  ponds  are  marked  L. ;  summits,  A.  (Alto)  ;  paramos,  P. ;  mountains,  Mt.,  and 
rivers,  R.  To  these  last  are  added  the  names  of  the  waters  into  which  they  emp- 
ty ;  r  signifies  from  the  right  bank,  I  from  the  left.  Capitals  of  provinces  are 
designated  by  **,  cabeceras  of  cantones  by  *,  post-towns  with  weekly  mail  by  f , 
and  towns  with  26  mails  a  year  by  f. 

The  accentuation  is  given  on  the  same  principle  as  in  Appendix  I. 


Abejorralt,  An.  7;  6801. 

Achi,  Mp.  3 ;  1002. 

Agrado,  Nv.  8 ;  2723. 

Agua-caliente,  Mq.  1 ; 

Agua-chica,  Oc.  1 ;  701. 

Aguada,  Vz.  1 ;  2462. 

Aguadas,  An.  7 ;  5377. 

Agua-larga,  B.  8; 

Agua-nueva,  B.  1 ; 

Aipe,  Nv.  1 ;  3449. 

ALANJE,  I.  2 ;  16,654. 

Alanje,  I.  2;  3149. 

Algarrobo,  Mq.  3 ;  827. 

Algodonal,  E.,  Oc.,  is  the  Catatimbo. 

Almaguer  *  t,  Pp.  2 ;  5529. 

Almorzadero,  B   10 ; 

Alpujarra,  Nv.  4;  2413. 

AMAGA,  An.  2 ;  30,536. 

Amaga*  t,  An.  2;  4717. 

Amalfi  *  t,  An.  5 ;  2738. 

AMBALEMA,  Mq.  2  ;  17,892. 

Ambalema*  t,  Mq.  2;  9731. 

Anapoima,  B.  10 ;  2362 ; 

Ancuya,  Ps.  5;  1758. 

Angostura  de  Nare,  Vz. ; 

Angostura,  An.  8 ;  2944. 

Anjeles,  Oc.  161. 

Anolaima,  B.  10 ;  5286. 

Anori,  An.  8;  1924. 

ANSEBMA,  Cc.  2 ;  2623. 

Anserma-nuevo  *  t,  Cc.  2  ;  1609. 

Anserma-viejo,  Cc.  2;  1014. 

ANTIOQUIA,  An.,  243,388. 

ANTIOQUIA,  An.  3 ;  24,439. 

Antioquia  *  t,  An.  3 ;  8687. 

Anton,  I.  12  ;  3711. 

Anza,  An.  3 ;  4390. 


358 


125 

222 


283 


346 
T5 


Apop6ris,  R.,  Me. ;  Caqueta,  R.  I. 

Apulo,  R.,  B.  12 ;  Bogota,  R.  r.  286. 

Arama,  B.  11 ;  100. 

.aratoca*  t,  Sc.  4;  5091. 

ABAUCA,  Cs.  2 ;  1954. 

Arauca*  t,  Cs.  2;  1548. 

Arauca,  R.,  Cs. ;  Orin6co,  B,  I. 

Arauquita,  Cs.  2;  289. 

ArbolMas,  Pm.  9  ;  1433. 

Ariporo,  R.,  Cs. ;  Meta,  E.  I. 

Arjona,  Ct.  7 ;  2623 ;  48 

Anna,  E.,  An. ;  Cauca,  E.  r. 

Anna,  An.  7;  433. 

Arrayan,  I.  5 ;  528. 

Arrayanal,  Ch.  1 ;  1125. 

Arroyo  de  Piedra,  Sb.  "2  ;  342. 

Arroyo-grande,  Ct.  1 ;  365. 

Arroyo-hondo,  hacienda,  Bv.  1 ;  524 

Arroyo-hondo,  Ct.  7 ;  863 ;  53 

Arv61a,  Pp.  2 ;  1542. 

Arzobispo,  R.  del,  B. ;  Bogota,  R  I. ;  211 

Aserrad&ro,  B.  8;  125 

Aspasica,  Oc.  1 ;  1317. 

Aspinwall,  I.  9,  is  Colon. 

Atabapo,  R.,  Sn ;  Guaviare,  R.  r. 

Ataco,  Mq.  8 ;  1090. 

Atalaya,  I.  10 ;  1059. 

Atanques,  Vd.  1 ;  381. 

ATEATO,  Ch.  1 ;  22,597. 

Atrato,  E.,  Ch.  ;  Caribbean  Sea. 

Aurora,  hacienda,  Cc.  1 ;  507 

Ayapel,  Ct  5 ;  2015. 

A  zero,  Cs.  2;  44. 

Azufral  de  Quindio,  Mq.  1 ;  357 

Badillo,  Vd.  1 ;  1098. 
Baganique,  Tj.,  is  EamiriquL 


576 


APPENDIX. 


Baja,  Pm.  2 ;  692. 

Balsa,  Cc.  3;  199;  872 

Balsa,  R.,  Vz.,  is  the  Fuquene. 
Bananes,  R.,  I. ;  Caribbean  Sea. 
B&nco  *,  Sin.  3 ;  1070 ;  64 

BABBACOAS,  Ps.  2 ;  9252. 
BarbacoasM,  Ps.  2;  5049. 
Barbosa,  An.  1 ;  3504. 

Barcinal,  C'c.  3 ;  371 

BABICHAEA,  Sc.  2;  23,080. 
Barichara  «  t,  Sc.  2 ;  8905. 
Barranca,  Sb.  1 ;  2465. 
Barrdnca-bermeja  t,  Sc.  7 ;  6!. 
Barranca-nu6va,  Ct.  7 ;  1198. 
Barrdnca-vtija,  Ct.  7 ;  400. 
Barrancas,  Rh.  1 ;  1766. 
Barranco,  Mp.  1;  1036. 
BAEEANQUII.I.A,  Sb.  1 ;  12,265. 
Barranquilla  **  t,  Sb.  1 ;  6114 ;  36 

Barro-blanco,  B.  5 ;  G53 

Bdrro-bldnco,  Cs.  5 ;  827. 
Baru,  Ct  1 ;  573. 
Bata,  R.,  Tj.,  is  the  Boyac&. 
Baudo,  Ch.  2 ;  3036. 
Baudo,  R.,  Ch. ;  Pacific. 
Bebara  t,  Ch.  1 ;  4034. 
Bebara,  R.  Ch.  1 ;  Atrato,  R  r. 
Becerril,  Vd.  2 ;  492. 
Belen,  An.  1 ;  3805. 
Belen,  Td.  1 ;  5007. 
Belmira,  An.  8 ;  1448. 

Berru6cos,  R,  Ps.  1 ;  Patia,  R.  I. ;  252 

Beteitiva,  Td.  1 ;  2971. 
Betf>yes,  Cs.  3 ;  269. 
Betulia,  Sc.  7 ;  1840. 
Bitulma,  B.  10;  4468. 
Boavita,  Td.  4 ;  4415. 

B6ca-chica,  Ct.  1;  440;  42 

Boca-chlca,  I.  2 ;  104. 
Bdca  del  Carare  t,  Sc. 

Boca  del  Monte,  B.  1;  290 

B6ca-grande,  Ct.  1 ;  42 

Bocas  del  Dragon,  I.  4;  78. 
BOOAS  DEL  TOBO,  I.  4 ;  625. 
Bocas  del  Toro  *  t,  I.  4 ;  547. 
Bochalema,  Pm.  10 ;  612. 
Bocdn,  R.,  Sn. ;  Inirlda,  R.  r. 
BOGOTA,  B.  336,702 ;  240 

BOGOTA,  B.  1. ;  47,988. 

Bogota  •*  t,  B.  1 ;  29,649 ;  152 

Bogota,  R.,  B. ;  Magdalena,  R.  r.;  136 

Bogota  Plain;  126 

Bojaca,  B.  5;  2037. 
Boldno,  I.  6  (pop.  not  known). 
Bolivar,  Vz.  1 ;  4188. 
Bolivia,  hacienda,  Bv.  1 ;  537. 
Bdnda,  Sm.  1 ;  325. 

Boquerdn,  B.  1 ;  220 

Boquer6n,  B.  7 ;  315 

Boqueron,  I.  2 ;  845. 

Boquia,  Cc.  3 ;  198 ;  371 

Botello,  Venta,  B.  5;  128 

Boyaca,  Tj.  1 ;  4051 ;  235 

,Boyaca,  R,  Tj.,  Cs. ;  Upia,  R.  r. 
Bdza,  B.  1;  1124;  273 

B6za,  R,  B.  1 ;  Bogota,  R  I 
Brotare,  Oc.  1 ;  46:2. 
BUCABAMANGA,  Pm.  2 ;  21,983. 
Bucaramanga  *  t,  Pm.  2;  10,008;  207 

BUENAVENTURA,  Bv. ;  31,150. 
Buenaventura  *  t,  Bv.  2 ;  1956 ;  20,  539 

Buenavlsta,  Ct.  4;  337. 

Buenavlsta,  Mq.  1;  357 

Buenavista,  Oc.  1;  684. 

Buenavista,  Vz.  2 ;  1320 ;  90 

Buenosaires,  Pp.  5 ;  3024. 
Buesaco,  Ps.  1 ;  1366. 
BUGA,  Cc.  1 ;  14,970. 

Buga«i,  Cc.  1;  6513;  502 

Buga,  R,  Cc.  1,  is  Piedras,  R 


Bugdba,  I.  2 ;  331. 
Buga-la-grande,  Cc.  7 ;  2098 ; 


V,.' 


Buga-la-grande,  R,  Cc.  7;  Cauca,  R  r. ;     459 
Burila,  Cc.  3;  438 

Buritica,  An.  3 ;  1999. 

Burro,  Cienega,  Cc.  3;  437 

Busbanza,  Td.  1;  1070. 

Cabal,  Cc.  3;  671. 

Cabana,  hacienda,  Cc.  3;  390 

Cabrtra,  Sc.  2 ;  5037. 

Cabrera,  R.,  Nv. ;  Magdalena,  R  r. 

Cabuyaro,  B.  11 ;  127. 

Caceres,  An.  8 ;  1003. 

Caches,  Pm.  10. 

Cacota,  Pm.  1;  1799. 

Cafifi  t,  Cs.  1 ;  218. 

Caguan,  Nv.  1;  1198. 

Caguan,  R.,  Me. ;  Caqueta,  R  I. 

Caicedo,  Bv.  1  (part  of  Cali).          . 

Caimito,  Ct.  5 ;  1400. 

Cajamdrca,  Bv.  3 ;  662. 

Cajibio,  Pp.  1 ;  2115. 

Cajica,  B.  3;  2003. 

Calamart,  Ct.  7;  458;  63 

Calambas,  Nv.  3;  4070. 

Calamoina,  Mq.  5;  2215. 

Caldas,  An.  2  ;  2431. 

CALDAS,  Pp.  2 ;  21,477. 

Caldas,  Vz.  2  ;  4249. 

Caldas,  Mts.  ;  525 

Caldera,  I.  2;  137. 

Caldono,  Pp.  5;  3243. 

CALI,  Bv.  1 ;  19,277. 

Call  •*  *,  Bv.  1 ;  11,848 ;  515 

Cali,  R,  Bv.  1 ;  Cauca,  R  {.  ;  623 

Caldbre,  I.  10;  2111. 

Caloto,  Pp.  5;  4391;  529 

Camarones,  Rh.  1 ;  1183. 

Campamento,  An.  8;  1961. 

Campoalegre,  Nv.  1 ;  3365. 

Campo  de  la  Cruz,  Sb.  2 ;  2018. 

Campo-hermoso,  Tj.  5 ;  1312. 

Caflas,  R.,  Cc.  3;  Cauca,  R.  r.;  416 

Caflas-gordas,  An.  3 ;  1763. 

Caflazas,  I.  10;  4245. 

Cancan,  An.  5;  499. 

Candelaria,  Cc.  4;  3367. 

Candelaria,  Sb.  2;  760. 

Candas,  An.  4;  406. 

Canoas,  hacienda,  B.  10;  283 

Cano-de-16ro,  Ct.  1 ;  260. 

Caparrapi,  B.  14 ;  5409. 

Capilla.  Td.  2 ;  3170. 

Capilla,  Tj.  2 ;  3904. 

Capira,  I.  5;  1287. 

Capitanejo,  Pm.  3;  2300. 

CAQTTESA,  B.  2 ;  26,003 ;  240 

Caquesa  •  t,  B.  2 ;  6271 ;  240 

CAQUETA  Territory  is  San  Martin  and 

Mocoa  (pop.  3676) ;  240 

Caqueta,  R,  Sn. ;  Amazon,  R.  I. 
Carac61,  Ct.  9 ;  285. 

Caracoli,  Cc.  3 ;  439 

Cara-de-perro  or  Careperro,  hill,  Cc.  3  ;       434 
Caramanta,  R.,  An.  ;  Cauca,  R  I. 
Carare,  R,  Vz. ;  Magdalena,  R.  r. 
Carate,  R.,  Oc.,  is  the  Catatumbo. 
Carcasi,  I'm.  3;  2833. 
Carlosama,  Ps.  3 ;  2731. 
Carmen,  B.  12;  2373. 
CABMEN,  Ct.  2;  10,323. 
Carmen  *  t,  Ct.  2 ;  3439. 
Carmen,  An.  4 ;  1810. 
Carmen,  Oc. ;  2854. 
Carnicerias  t,  Nv.  2 ;  2020. 
Carolina,  An.  8 ;  3805. 
CARTAGENA,  Ct. ;  116,593. 
CAETAGENA,  Ct.  1 ;  18,567. 
Cartagena  «*  $,  Ct.  1 ;  9896;  48 


APPENDIX. 


577 


CABTAGO,  Cc.  3;  14,892. 

Cartago  *  t,  Cc.  3 :  6744;  375 

Carupa,  B.  13;  2651. 

CASANARE,  C.  5 ;  18,573 ;  176, 240 

Casanare,  R.,  Cs. ;  Meta,  R. 

Cascajal,  Ct.  4;  459. 

Casiquiare,  R.,  Cs.  and  Cq. ;    Negro  R.  and 

Orinoco. 

CASTROLARMA,  Mq.  3 ;  13,302. 
Catatumbo,  R.,  Pm. ;  Zulia,  R.  I. 
CAUCA,  Cc. ;  70,748. 
Cauca,  R.,  Mp. ;  Magdalena,  R. 
Ceja,  An.  6;  4108. 
Ceja  de  Guatapo,  An.  4;  1114. 
Celandia,  Pp.5;  1864. 
Centino,  R.,  Vz.,  is  Min^ro,  R. 
Cepita,  Pm.  7 ;  3363. 
Cerete,  Ct.  3 ;  1388. 
Cerrillos,  Cc.  3 ;  820. 

Cerrito,  Cf .  1 ;  8331 ;  506 

Cerrito,  R.,  Cc.  1 ;  Cauca,  B.  r.  ;  510 

Cerrito,  Pm.  3 ;  1945. 
CESAR,  Rh.  2 ;  6242. 
Cesar  *  t,  Rh.  2  ;  2550. 
Cesar,  R.,  Sm. ;  Magdalena,  R.  r. 
CHAGRES,  I.  4 ;  1340. 
Chagres  *  t,  I.  4 ;  1340. 
Chagres,  R.,  I. ;  Caribbean  Sea. 
Chaguani,  B.  8 ;  1881. 
Chame,  I.  5;  1103. 
Chameza,  Tj.  5;  607. 
Chaparral  *  t,  Mg.  3 ;  6210. 
Chapigdna,  I.  6;  268. 

Chapinero,  B.  1 ;  201 

Chaquiral,  hacienda,  Cc.  3  •  394 

CHARALA,  Sc.  3;  19,346. 
Charala**,  Sc.  3;  8296. 
Chepo,  I.  1 ;  1536. 
Chia,  B.  6;  4424.^ 
Chiapaque,  B.  2 ;  4163. 
Chicamocha,  R.,  Td.,  is  the  Sogam&so. 
Chima,  Ct.  3 ;  202& 
Chima,  Sc.  1 ;  3010. 
Chirndn,  I.  13 ;  276. 

Cbimbe,  B.  8;  125 

Chiinichagua,  Vd.  2;  681. 
Chinacota,  Pm.  10;  2012. 
Chinevita,  Tj.  2  ;  1055. 
CHINU,  Ct.  5;  24,224. 
Chinu»t,  Ct.  5;  5067. 

Chipalo,  R.,  Mq.  1 ;  Magdalena,  B.  I. ;         337 
Chiapaque,  B.  2  ;  4163. 
Chipasaque,  B.  9 ;  5883. 
Chipata,  Vz.  1 ;  7565. 
CHIQUINQUIRA,  Vz.  2 ;  24,663. 
Chiquinquira  *  t,  Vz.  2 ;  8271 ;  186 

Chiquisa,  Tj.  1 ;  1414. 
CniRE,  Cs.  3;  2153. 
Chire*,  Cs.  3;  404. 
Chire,  R.,  Cs.  3;  Meta,  R.  I 
CHIRIGUANA,  Vd.  2 ;  6403. 
Chiriguana  *  t,  Vd.  2 :  3578. 
Chiriqui,  R.,1;  Pacific. 
Chirivi,  Tj.  6  ;  3155. 
Chiscas,  Td.  2 ;  5119. 
Chita  t,  Td.  2  ;  7040. 
Chitaga,  Pm.  1 ;  1220. 
Chitaraque,  Vz.  3;  2900. 
Chivata,  Tj.  1 ;  3045. 

Choachi,  B.  1 ;  4691 ;  242 

Choachi,  Paramo,  B.  1 ;  237 

Choachi  Sulphur  Spring,  B.  1;  242 

Chocho,  hacienda,  B.  7 ;  301 

CHOCO,  Ch. ;  48,649. 
Choco,  Cano  de,  Pm.  and  Oc. 
CHOCONTA,  B.  4;  31,564. 
Choconta**,  B.  4;  8461. 
Chopo.  Pm.  1 ;  1647.        , 
CHORRERA,  I.  5 ;  6475. 
Chorrera*  t,  I.  5;  2451. 


Chorrera,  R.,  I. ;  Pacific. 
Chorrera,  Rh.  1 ;  401. 

Chorro,  Cc.  7 ;  493 

Chucunaque,  R.,  I. ;  Sabana,  R.  I. 
Cibate,  B.  1 ;  287 

CIENEGA,  Sm.  2 ;  8573. 
Cienega  »  t,  Sm.  2 :  5078. 
Cienega,  Tj.  6 ;  2985. 
CIENEGA-DE-OEO,  Ct.  3 ;  13,251. 
Cienega-de-oro  *  t,  Ct.  3 ;  5163. 
Cincelada,  Sc.  3 ;  3043. 

Cincha,  hacienda,  B.  13 ;  2S6 

Cipacdn, B.  5 ;  1747. 
CIPAQUIRA,  B.  3 ;  26,994. 
Cipaquira  *  t,  B.  3 ;  6077t 
Cite,  Vz.  1 ;  8354, 
Claro,  R.,  Ch.  ;  Pacific. 
Cobarachia,  Td.  4;  2702. 
Cocoron&,  An.  4;  1804 
Cocui,  Td.  2 ;  29,605. 
Cocui«t,  Td.  2;  5729. 

Coello,  Mq.  1 ;  2878  ;  323 

Coello,  R.,  Mq. ;  Magdalena,  R.  I.  ;  322 

C6gua,  B.  3;  8941. 
Coiba,  I.  10;  63. 
Colejio,  B.  10;  1170. 
Colombia,  Nv.  4;  1673. 
Col6nt,  1.9. 
Colosina,  Ct.  3;  1152. 
Colos6,  Ct.  9 ;  491. 

Combeima,  R.,  Mq. ;  Coello,  R.  I. ;  337 

C6mbita,  Tj.  1 ;  4052. 
Concepcion,  An.  6 ;  1616. 
CONCEPCION,  Pm.  3 ;  19,°25. 
Concepcion  *  t,  Pm.  3;  8619. 
Concordia,  An.  2 ;  1747. 

Con^jo,  B.  14;  90 

Confines,  Sc.  1 ;  3376. 
Consaca,  Ps.  1 ;  2520. 
Convencidn,  Oc. ;  1788. 
Copacabana,  An.  1 ;  4073. 
Coper,  Vz.  2 ;  1040. 
Cordova,  An.  9;  2651. 
Coromoro,  Sc,  3;  2032. 
COROZAL,  Ct.  4;  13,013. 
Corozal*  t,  Ct.  4;  6351. 
Corrales,  Td.  1 ;  1715. 
Cota,  B.  6 ;  1503. 
Cototdma,  Rh.  1 ;  136. 
Coyaima,  Nvl  4 ;  5544. 
Cr4ce-noche,  Oc.,  is  Anjelea 
Crucea,  An.  8 ;  553. 

Cruces,  B.  8;  102 

Cruces,  I.  1 ;  495. 
Cruz,  Oc. ;  2682. 
Cruz,  Pp.  2  ;  4176. 

Cruz  V6rde,  Paramo,  B.  1 ;  255 

Cuatro  Esquinas,  B.  6 ;  134 

Cuatro  Esquinas,  Mq.  1;  340 

Cucaita,  Tj.  1;  929. 
Cucunuba,  B.  13 ;  4831. 
Cucuta,  Pm.  8;  602/ 
Cucutilla,  Pm.  1 ;  2344. 
CuiWo,  Cs.  2;  37. 
Cuitiva,  Td.  5;  1446. 
Culatas,  Sc.  1,  is  Confines. 
Cnlebrera,  B.  6;  185 

Jumbal,  Ps.  3;  2973. 
;unacua,  Sc.  5;  22S4. 
Junari,  R.,  Me. ;  Caqueta,  R.  (. 
^undai,  B.  7;  2619. 

June,  B.  8 ;  118 

;upica,  R.,  Ch.;  Pacific. 
,'uriti,  Sc.  4 ;  4055. 
Jurcio,  B.  10;  551 

Dabeiba,  An.  3;  565. 

Dagua,  R.,  Bv.  2;  Pacific;  20 

DARIEN,  I.  6;  1209. 

David  »t,  I.  2; ;  4625. 


578 


APPENDIX. 


Dibulla,  Rh.  1 ;  487. 

Dique  (Oanal),  Ct ;  60 

Dolega,  I.  2 ;  1606. 

Doldres,  Nv.  4;  3146. 

Don  Matias,  An.  8 ;  2648. 

Duitama,  Td.  1 ;  6698. 

Eb6jico,  An.  9;  26T2. 

Ele,  R,  Cs. ;  Casanare,  R  I. 

Elicdnia,  An.  2 ;  2068. 

Encino,  Sc.  3 ;  1284. 

Enciso,  Pm.  3;  2582. 

Engativa,  R  1 :  695. 

Entrertos,  An.  8 ;  1256. 

Envigado,  An.  1 ;  4706. 

Escobal,  B.  8 ;  125 

ESPINAL,  Mq.  4;  18,976. 

Espinal  t,  Mq.  4;  6963;  321 

Eepinal,  hacienda,  liv.  1 ;  534 

Esplno,  Td.  2 ;  1578. 

Espiritu  Santo,  Vd.  1 ;  630. 

Estrella,  An.  3;  1830. 

FACATATFVA,  B.  5 ;  14,334 

Facatativa  *  t,  B. ;  5023 ;  129 

Favara,  R,  I. ;  Pacific. 

Firabitova,  Td.  5 ;  4386. 

Flamenco,  Ct.  7 ;  730. 

Fl6res,  Vz.  1 ;  1276. 

Floresta,  Td.  1 ;  4783. 

Florida,  Cc.  4 ;  2754. 

Florida,  Ps.  1 ;  3166. 

Florida,  Pm.  5;  3260. 

Fomeque,  B.  2 ;  6645 ;  263 

Fonseca,  Rh.  1 ;  2120. 

Fonseca,  R.,  I. ;  Pacific. 

Fontibon,  B.  1 ;  1986;  137 

FORTOUL,  Pm.  4;  9568. 

Fdsca,  B.  2 ;  1325. 

Fragua,  Cs.  1,  is  Moreno. 

Fred6nia,  An.  2 ;  5786. 

Frio,  R.,  Bv.  3 ;  Cauca,  R.  I ;  403 

Frisolar,  Cc.  3 ;  439 

Frontino,  An.  3 ;  944. 

Fucha,  R.,  B.  1 ;  Bogota,  R  I  ;  226 

Fundicidn,  Sin.  2 ;  217. 

Funes,  Ps.  1 ;  1428. 

FUNZA,  B.  6 ;  18,744. 

Funza't,  B.  6;  4559;  134 

Funza,  R,  is  the  Bogota. 

Fuquene,  B.  13 ;  2666. 

Fuquene,  L.,  B.  13. 

Fuquene,  R,  Vz. ;  Sogamoso,  R.  /. 

FUBAGASUGA,  B.  7 ;  9967. 

FusagasugA  *  i,  B.  7 ;  8752 ;  294 

Fusagasuga,  R,  B. ;  Sumapaz,  R  r. ;          302 

Fusagasuga,  Paso  de,  B.  12;  819 

Gachala,  B.  9;  578. 

Gachancipa,  B.  3;  1694 

Gachantiva,  Tj.  4;  4029. 

Gacheta,  B.  9;  7718. 

Gaira,  Sm.  1 ;  589. 

Galapa,  Sb.  1 ;  958. 

Galfiras,  Ct.  4;  758. 

Galinavi,  R,  Td.,  is  the  Sogamoso. 

Gallcgo,  Mg.  1 ;  365 

Gambita,  Sc.  6;  2738. 

Gameza,  Td.  5;  2567. 

CfarcKhtne,  I.  6 ;  162. 

GABAGOA,  Tj.  2;  25,252. 

Garag6a*t,  Tj.  2;  7079. 

Garagda,  R,  Tj.,  is  the  Boyaca. 

Garrnche,  R,  I. ;  Pacific. 

Garz6n«t,Xv.  5;  8055. 

Gatun,  I.  4  (pop.  not  known). 

GOAJIRA  Terr.  ;  26 

Gorg6na,  I.  1 ;  741. 

Guacamdyas,  Td.  2;  2034 

Guaca,  Pm.  4;  3179. 


Guacari,  Cc.  1 ;  29S9. 

Guachiives,  Ps.  5;  1135. 

Guacheta,  B.  13 ;  5041. 

Guachucal,  Ps.  3;  2S68. 

Guacuba,  R,  Ch. ;  Caribbean  Sea. 

Guadalupe,  Nv.  6;  1702. 

Guadalupe,  Sc.  5;  5461. 

Guadalilpe  Mt,  B.  1 ;  .'j: 

GUADUAS,  B.  8 ;  30,989. 

Guaduas  •  t,  B.  9 ;  9044 ;  106 

Guagua,  Nv.  1 ;  2842. 

Guaimaro,  Sm.  4  ;  1106. 

Guainia,  R  ;  Patia,  R  L 

Guaitarilla,  Ps.  5;  3122. 

Gual^ca,  I.  2;  1351. 

Guali,  R,  Mq. ;  Magdalena,  R  I. 

Gual6ya,  R,  Me. ;  Caqueta,  R  I. 

<  iuama  Bridge,  B.  8 ;  128 

Guamal,  Sm.  3 ;  1377. 

Gnamo,  Ct.  2;  714 

Guamo't,  Mq.  4;  8577. 

Guamues,  Me.,  is  the  Putumayo. 

Guanapalo,  Cs.  1,  is  Cafifi. 

Guane,  Sc.  2;  4000. 

Guane,  R,  Sc.  1,  is  the  Socorro. 

Guapi  *  t,  Pp.  4;  2281. 

Guapota,  Sc.  1;  8035. 

Gnarne,  An.  6 ;  3190. 

Guasca,  B.  9;  3067. 

Guataqui,  B.  12;  1076. 

GUATAVITA,  B.  9 ;  26,632. 

Guatavita  *  t,  B.  9 ;  5145. 

GCAT^QUK,  Tj.  3;  21,476. 

Guatt-que  *  t,  Tj.  3 ;  6025. 

Guateque,  Tj.  4;  3001. 

Guatigara. 

Guativa,  Cs.  3 ;  425. 

Guavas,  R,  Cc.  1 ;  Canca,  R  r. ;  505 

Guavata,  Vz.  1 ;  5079. 

Guaviare,  R.,  Cs. ;  Orinoco,  R 

Guavio,  R,  Tj.,  is  the  Somondoco. 

Guavito,  Cc.  3  ;  423 

Guavito,  Cc.  7;  497 

Guayabal,  B.  8 ;  123 

Guayabal,  Cs.  1 ;  602. 

Guayabil,  Mq.  5 ;  4766. 

Guayabal,  R,  Oc.,  is  the  Catatumbo. 

Guayata,  Tj.  3  ;  5159. 

Guazo,  Mp.  2  ;  440. 

Giiepsa,  Vz.  1 ;  3156. 

Guican,  Td.  2 ;  2352.   . 

Guicani,  Td.,  is  Guican. 

Hacha,  R,  Rh. ;  Caribbean  Sea. 

Hatillo,  Mp.  1 ;  459. 

Hato,  Sc.  1 ;  1634 

Hato  de  Lemos,  Cc.  6;  2889. 

Hato  Vidjo,  B.  4;  4504 

Hato  Viejo,  An.  1 ;  1917. 

Higueron,  An.  8;  934. 

HONDA,  Mq.  5;  16,335. 

Hdnda  •  t,  Mq.  5 ;  8069 ;  96 

H6nda,  R,  Cc.  3;  Cauca,  R.  I;  892 

H6yo  del  Aire,  Vz. ;  263 

Hunza,  Tj.,  is  Tunja. 

out,  Mq.  1 ;  20,480. 
Ibagu6  «  t,  Mq.  1 ;  7162 ;  323 

lea,  R,  Me.,  is  the  Putumayo. 
[cononzo  Bridge  is  Pandi. 
lies,  Ps.  8;  1448. 
Imues,  Ps.  5;  987. 
Inza,  Nv.  3;  26S7. 
Inirida,  R,  SMn. ;  Guaviare,  R.  I 
IPIALES,  Ps.  3;  22,373. 
Ipiales't,  Ps.  3;  6646. 
[quira,  Nv.  2 ;  1715. 
traca,  Td.,  is  Sogamoso. 
IsalxM  Lopez,  Sb.  2  ;  400. 
ISTMO,  ESTADO  DEL,  I. ;  138,208. 


APPENDIX. 


579 


Itagul,  An.  2 ;  5182. 
I  toco,  Vz.  2;  1121. 
Ituango,  An.  3 ;  1175. 
Iza,  Td.  5;  1395. 
IZCTTANDE,  Pp.  3 ;  5441. 
Izcuande  *  t,  Pp.  3 ;  5441. 

Jagua,  Nv.  5;  1674, 

Jagua,  Vd.  2 ;  524. 

Jambalo,  Pp.  5 ;  1968. 

Jegua,  Ct.  5 ;  561. 

Jenesano,  Tj.  6 ;  4510. 

Jeneseno,  R,  Tj.,  is  the  Boyaca. 

Jerico,  Td.  3;  3458. 

Jesus  Maria,  Vz.  1,  is  Valle. 

Jicaramata,  Cc.  7;  496 

Jigantet,  Nv.  5;  3213. 

Jimani,  Ct.  1;  43 

Jim6na,  Pp.  1 ;  1197. 

Jiradota,  An.  1 ;  3149. 

Jiramena,  B.ill;  242. 

JIBON,  Pm.  5;  12,576. 

Jiron*i,Pm.  5;  9133. 

Jobo,  Vd.  1 ;  . 

JORDAN,  Sc.  4 ;  9146. 

Juanambu,  R.,  Ps. ;  Patia,  R 

Juan  de  Acosta,  Sb.  1 ;  848. 

Julumito,  Pp.  1 ;  1241. 

Juntas,  Bv.  2 ;  20. 

Juntas,  B.  12  ;  345 

Jupura,  R.,  Me.,  is  the  Caqueta. 

Labateca,  Pm.  1 ;  1913. 

Labranza-grande  *  t,  Cs.  4;  3379. 

Laguna,  R.,  Pp. ;  Patia,  R.  I. 

Laguna-grande,  pond,  B.  2; 

Lagunetas,  Cc.  3  ;  372 

Lajas,  R.,  Cc.  3;  Cauca,  R.  I. ;  894 

Lajas,  Ps.  3 ;  517 

Lebrija,  R.,  Oc. ;  Magdalena,  R.  ;-. 

LEIVA,  Tj.  4;  22,219. 

Leiva*i,  Tj.  4;  3395. 

Leiva,  R.,  is  the  Moniquira. 

Lemos,  Hato  de,  Cc.  6 ;  2889. 

Lenguasaque,  B.  13;  3479. 

Lerida,  Mq.  2 ;  5025. 

Liborina,  An.  9 ;  1273. 

Libraida,  Cc.  3 ;  2151 ;  412 

Limas,  Nv.  5 ;  2576. 

Limoncito,  Pm.  10 ;  368. 

Lipa,  R.,  Cs. ;  Ele,  R.  I 

Lloro,  Ch.  1 ;  4035. 

Loba,  Mp.  1 ;  1039. 

Ldma  de  Corredoi-,  Oc. ;  401. 

Fx>ma  de  Indijena",  Oc. ;  513. 

LofiicA,  Ct.  6 ;  7493. 

Lorica't,Ct.  0;  3532. 

Macaguane,  Cs.  3 ;  183. 

Macanal,  Tj.   • ;  2567. 

Macao,  R.,  <;*  ;  Sarare,  R.  I 

Macaraca=,  I.  11;  2708. 

Macaravita,  Pm.  8:  2550. 

?.[acheta,  B.  4;  6270. 

MAGANGUE,  Mp.  2 ;  6832. 

Magangue*  t,  Mp.  2;  2512. 

Magdalena,  R. ;  Caribbean  Sea. 

JIague,  B.  7;  301 

JIagui,  R,  Ps. ;  Patia,  R.  I. 

JlAHATES,  Ct.  7;  12,659. 

Mahates  »  t,  Ct.  7;  1278;  50 

MAJAGUAL,  Mp.  3 ;  5227. 

Majagual  «  t,  Mp.  3;  2409. 

MALAGA,  Pm.  6 ;  11,175. 

Malaga  «  t,  Pm.  6;  4410. 

Malaga  vita,  Pm.  6;  3899. 

Malambo,  Sb.  3  ;  853. 

Males,  Ps.  3 ;  1620. 

Mallama,  Ps.  5 ;  1266. 

Mamatoco,  Sm.  1 ;  343. 


Manare,  Cs.  3;  239. 

Manati,  Sb.  3 ;  799. 

Manizales,  An.  7 ;  2809. 

Manta,  B.  4;  5303. 

Maquivor,  Cs.  1 ;  120. 

Maranon,  R.,  is  the  Amazon. 

Margarita,  Mp.  1;  1827;  64 

Maria  la  Baja,  Ct  7 ;  266. 

MAKINJLLA,  An.  4 ;  17,909. 

Marinilla  *  t,  An.  4 ;  3414. 

Maripi,Vz.  2;  890. 

MARIQUITA,  Mq. ;  86,985;  333 

Mariquita,  Mq.  5 ;  1737. 

Marocdso,  Rh.  2 ;  98. 

Marroquin,  Cs.  4 ;  469. 

Matanza,  Pm.  2;  35S2. 

Have,  B.  8;  123 

Mayasquer,  Ps.  3;  212. 

Mayo,  R.,  Ps. ;  Patia,  R.  I. 

MEDELLIN,  An.  1 ;  38,610. 

Medellin  *»  t,  An.  1 ;  13,756. 

Medialuna,  Sm.  2 ;  529. 

Medina  «,  B.  11 ;  913. 

Medio,  Cc.  3;  417 

Melgar,  B.  12;  2600;  318 

Mendez,  Mq.  5 ;  1043 ;  342 

Mercaderes,  Pp.  2 ;  1712. 

Meredia,  Sn.  5;  1910. 

MESA,  B.  10;  23,545. 

Mesa«t,  B.  10;  6012;  346 

Mesa,  I.  10;  2542. 

Meta,  R,  Cs. ;  Orinoco,  R  I ;  236 

MICAI,  Pp.  4;  8853. 

Micai,  Pp.  4;  2296. 

Micai,  R.,  Pp. ;  Pacific. 

Micos,  R.,  Cc.  3;  Cauca,  L  ;  390 

Miel,  R.,  Mq. ;  Magdalena,  R.  I. 

Minas,  I.  8;  1642. 

Minas,  Cc.  7 ;  490 

Mineral,  I.  10;  282. 

Mira,  R.,  Ps. ;  Pacific. 

Miraflores,  Mq.  1 ;  680. 

MIBAFLOEES,  Tj.  5;  8387. 

Miraflores  *  t,  Tj.  5 ;  5002. 

MOCOA  Terr.,  Me. 

Mocoa  «  t,  Me. 

M6cu,  R.,  Cs. ;  Vichada,  R.  I. 

Mogotes,  Sc.  6;  6568. 

Xolineca,  I.  6 ;  77. 

Molino,  Rh.  2;  1246. 

Momil,  Ct.  6 ;  617. 

MOMPOS,  Mp. ;  30,207. 

MOMPOS,  Mp.  1 ;  13,711. 

Mompos  «  t,  Mp.  1 ;  7336 ;  60 

Mongua,  Td.  5;  2461. 

Mongui,  Td.  5;  1540. 

MONIQUIEA,  Vz.  3 ;  20,734. 

Moniquira  «  t,  Vz.  3 ;  9127. 

Moniquira,  R.,  Vz. ;  Fuquene,  R.  r. 

Monteria,  Ct.  3;  2039. 

Montijo,  I.  10 ;  2009. 

Moncerrate,  mountain,  B.  1 ;  214 

Moral,  Mq.  1 ;  357 

Morales,  I.,  Mp.  4 

Morales,  Mp.  4;  1094. 

Morcote,  Cs.  4;  721. 

Moreno  «•  t,  Cs.  1 ;  1365. 

Moreno,  Rh.  1 ;  772. 

Morillo,  hacienda;  455 

Morillo,  R.,  Cc. ;  5  &  7 ;  Cauca,  R.  r. ;         455 

Morroa,  Ct  4;  772. 

Motavita,  Tj.  1 ;  1275. 

Muneque  t,  Cs.  ? 

Murindo,  Ch.  1 ;  2007. 

Murri,  Ch.  1 ;  2009. 

Murri,  R.,  Ch. ;  Atrato,  R.  r. 

Mutiscua,  Pm.  1 ;  982. 

Muzo  t,  Vz.  2;  862. 

Xapipi,  R,  Ch. ;  Atrato,  R  I 


580 


APPENDIX. 


Naranjo,  Cc.  8,  U  Obando. 

Naret,Mq.  6;  1064; 

Nare,  R,  An.  ;  Magdal6na,  R  I. 

Nartno,  An.  T;  460. 

Nariflo,  B.  12;  1048. 

NATA,  I.  7;  12,881. 

Nata  "  t,  I.  7  ;  8029. 

Nataga,  Nv.  2  ;  471. 

Natagaimat,  Nv.  4;  403S. 

.V«cftt,An.  5;  478. 

Nechi,  R,  An.  ;  Cauca,  R.  r. 

Negro,  R.  ;  Amazon,  R.  L 

Negro,  R.,  An.,  is  the  Nare. 

Negro,  R.,  Vz.  ;  Magdalena,  R.  r. 

Xeira,  An.  7  ;  8606. 

Neira,  Xv.  1  ;  1706. 

NEIVA,  Xv.  ;  101,772. 

NfciVA,  Nv.  1  ;  26,780. 

X6iva  **  t,  7719. 

Xeiva,  R,  Nv.  ;  Magdalena,  R.  r. 

Xeme,  R  8; 

Nemocon,  B.  3;  3018. 

Nepomuceno,  Ct.  2  ;  1904. 

A'ermti,  Ct  2  ;  113. 

Nilo,  B.  12  ;  1815. 

Nimaima,  B.  8  ;  901. 

Nisperal,  Sb.  1  ; 

Noanama,  Ch.  2  ;  8510. 

Nobsa,  Td.  1  ;  2951. 

Nocaima,  B.  8;  2590. 

NORDOEBTK,  An.  2;  834S. 

Norosi,  Mp.  4;  324. 

Xovillero,  hacienda,  B.  7; 

Xovita  •  t,  Ch.  2  ;  6097. 

Nudva  Caramanta,  An.  2  ;  1154 

NuucnfA,  Cs.  4;  6683. 

Nunchia,  Cs.  4;  531. 

Obando,  Cc.  3;  2069; 

Ocamonte,  Sc.  3  ;  2555. 

OCANA,  Oc.  ;  23,450. 

O.-AXA,  Oc.  1;  23,450. 

Ocana"*,  Oc.  1;  5046; 

OCCIDENTS,  Nv.  2  ;  9494. 

Oflft,!.  8;  5580. 

OIBA,  Sc.  5;  21,792. 

Oiba'i,  Sc.  5;  6G76. 

Oicata,  Tj.  1  ;  2319. 

Ola,  I.  7;  710. 

Onzaga,  Sc.  6  :  6026. 

Opia  (ferry),  Mq.  1  ; 

Opia,  R,  Mq.  ;  Magdalena,  R  I.  ; 

Opdn,  R,  Sc.  ;  Magdalena,  R  I. 

Organos,  Nv.  1  ;  510. 

Orindco,  R,  Cs.  ;  Atlantic. 

Oro,  R,  Pm.  5,  is  the  Lebrija. 

Oro,  R,  Oc.  ;  Lebr^ja,  R  r. 

Oro,  R,  Oc.,  is  the  Catatumbo. 

Oro,  R,  Oc.  ;  Catatumbo,  R  I 

Orta,  R,  Vz. 

Ospina,  Ps.  5;  1061. 

Ortega,  Mq.  8  ;  6002. 

Otoque,  I.  13  ;  347. 

Otro  Mundo,  Vz.  I. 

Ovejas,  Ct.  9;  1748. 

Overo,  Cc.  7  ; 

Pachavita,  Tj.  2  ;  3836. 

Pacho,  B.  8  ;  3326. 

Pacora,  An.  7  ;  8610. 

/Vicoro,  I.  1  ;  773. 

Paez,  R,  Nv.  ;  Magdalena,  R  I 

Paic61  1,  Nv.  3  ;  1121. 

Paila,  R,  Cc.  ;  Cauca,  R  r.  ; 

Paila,  hacienda,  Cc.  3  ; 

J'iUme,  B.  13;  731. 

lupa,  Td.  1;  6614. 

Paipa,  R,  Td.  ;  Sogamoso,  R  I. 

Pajarito,  Cs.  5;  575. 

Palenque,  I.  9  ;  249. 


76 


90,  122 


842 


80 


300 


290 


206 


341 
340 


457 


417 
417 


PALMA,  B.  14;  18,120. 

Palina*  t,  B.  14;  4432. 

Palma,  Oc. ;  1008. 

Palmar,  Sc.  1 ;  2129. 

Palmar,  hacienda,  B.  8 ;  117 

Palmar  de  Candelaria,  Sb.  2 ;  83!;. 

Palmar  de  Varela,  Sb.  3 ;  1050. 

Palmarlto,  Mp.  3;  989. 

Palmas,  I.  10;  3004 

Palmas,  Sc.  1 ;  3322. 

Palmilla,  Mq.  1 ;  356 

PALMiEA,  Cc.  4;  16,176. 

Palmira  »  t,  Cc.  4 ;  10,055;  613 

Palmira,  Vd.  1 ;  294 

Palmito,  Ct.  9;  772. 

PAMI'LOXA,  Pm.  ;  139,03C. 

PAMPLONA,  Pm.  1 ;  22,922. 

Pamplona  •*  t,  Pm.  1 ;  9095. 

PANAMA,  I.  1 ;  10,111. 

Panama  "t,  I.  1;  6566. 

Pandi,  B.  7;  2533;  310 

Pandi,  bridge,  B.  7;  309 

Pdnga,  Ps.  5;  590. 

Paniquita,  Pp.  1 ;  2413. 

Panquova,  Td.  2 ;  1483. 

Paramo,  So.  1 ;  3218. 

Pare,  Vz.  8;  4602. 

PARJTA,  I.  8;  17,093. 

Parita*  t,  I.  8;  3019. 

Pasacaballos,  Ct  1 ;  227. 

Pasca,  B.  7;  488. 

Paso,  Vd.  2;  779. 

PASTO,  Ps. ;  82,952;  251 

PASTO,  Ps.  1 ;  27,630. 

Paste  •*  t,  Ps.  1 ;  8136. 

Patia,  Pp.  1 ;  2377. 

Patia,  R,  Ps. ;  Pacific. 

Pauna,  Vz.  2 ;  2435. 

Pdvas,  Bv.  1 ;  328. 

Paya,  Cs.  4 ;  1194 

Payando,  Mq.  1 ;  1584 

Paz,  Td.  3 ;  2460. 

Paz,  Vd.  1 ;  837. 

Paz,  Vz.  1 ;  3008. 

Pedasi,  I.  11;  708. 

Pedrul.  Pm.  5 ;  183. 

Pena,  B.  14;  3603. 

Pefiol,  An.  4;  5361. 

Peflon,  B.  14;  1504 

Penonomu  *  t,  I.  12 ;  8703. 

Peraldnso,  R,  Pm. 

Pesca,  Td.  5;  7690. 

Pescaderias,  B.  8 ;  101 

Pescado,  R  ;  Caqueta,  R  I. 

Pescaddr,  Bv.  8;  1752. 

Pese,  I.  8;  4732. 

Petaquero,  Sc,  6 ;  2118. 

Petaquero,  A.,  B.  8;  121 

Picazo,  hill,  Cc.  7;  490 

PiEDECtfcsTA,  Pm.  7;  20,208. 

Piedecuesta*  t,  Pm.  7:  14,841. 

Pie  de  la  Popa,  Ct  1 ;  875 ;  46 

Piudra  de  Mol6r,  Cc.  3 ;  873 

Piedras,  An.  2 ;  630. 

Piedrast,  Mq.  1;  5576;  340 

Piedras,  R,  Cc.  1 ;  Cauca,  R  r. ;  503 

Pifta,  canal,  Sb.  1 ;  40 

Pinchote,  Sc.  6;  2602. 

Pinillos,  Mp.  1 ;  526. 

Piiiogdna,  I.  6;  164 

Pinon,  Sm.  5;  2027. 

Pintada,  I.  12 ;  3155. 

Pinto.  Sm.  3;  367. 

Piojo,  Sb.  2;  604. 

Pisva.  Cs.  4 ;  289. 

Pitnl  t  Xv.  3 ;  238S. 

Pitalito,  Xv.  5;  1766. 

Pivijai,  Sm.  2 ;  1525. 

Platt.  An.  6;  141. 

PLATA,  Nv.  3;  18,826. 


APPENDIX. 


581 


Plata  *t,Nv.  3:  3212. 

Platanal,  Cc.  7 ;  492 

Platanal,  R,  Ch;  Pacific. 

PLATO,  Sm.  3;  T070. 

Plato*  t,  Sm.  8;  1516.  • 

Ptaya,  Sb.  1 ;  35 

Playas,  Cc.  7 ;  495 

Pocri,  I.  11 ;  1702. 

Poima,  Sc.,  is  Oiba. 

Polo-nuevo,  Sb.  3;  611. 

Ponedera,  Sb.  2;  404. 

Ponuga,  I.  10 ;  694. 

P6pa,  hill,  Ct  1 ;  46 

POPAYAN,  Pp.  91.399. 

POPAYAN,  Pp.  1 ;  35,839.  I 

Popayan***,  7010;  331 

Popoa,  R,  Vz. ;  Fiiquene,  B.  Z. 

POKE,  Cs.  1 ;  5554. 

Pore,  Cs.  1 ;  906. 

Portezuela,  Cc.  7 ;  457 

Portezuela,  Cc.  3;  372 

POETOBKLO,  I.  9 ;  1434. 

Portobelo*,  I.  9;  1185. 

Prado  t,  Nv.  4;  2335. 

Providencia,  I.,  Ct.  8;  640. 

Pueblo-nuevo,  Oc.  1 ;  286. 

Pueblo-viejo,  B.  2,  is  Une?  254 

Pueblo-viejo,  Sm.  2;  1224 

Pueblo-viejo,  Td.  5:  3540. 

Puente  Grande,  B.  6 ;  185 

Puente  Nacional  t,  Vz.  1 ;  10,018.          .. 

Puerta,  hacienda,  B.  7 ;  315 

Puerto  del  Car-are  t,  Sc. 

Puerto  Nacional  t,  Oc. ;  420 ;  69 

Puerto  Ocana,  Oc.,  is  P.  Nacional. 

Puerto  Real,  Oc.,  is  P.  Nacional. 

Pull,  B.  12 ;  2015. 

Pupiales,  fg.  3 ;  3880. 

Purace,  Pp. ;  2188. 

Purace,  volcano,  Pp.  1;  19 

PUBIFICACION,  Nv.  4 ;  26,978. 

Purificacidn  *  t,  Nv.  4;  7829. 

Purisima,  Ct.  6;  1127. 

Putumayo,  R  ;  Amazon,  R  I. 

Quebrada-negra,  B.  8 ;  3486. 

Quebrada-seca,  An.  9 ;  1557. 

Queremal,  Bv.  1 ;  517 

Queteme,  B.  2;  1874. 

Quibdo  **  t,  Ch.  1 ;  8471. 

Quilichao  »  t,  Pp.  5;  4222. 

Quinchia,  Cc.  3 ;  727. 

Quindio,  R,  Cc. ;  Vieja,  R.  r.  ;  871 

Quindio,  Mts.  ; 

Quindio,  Paramo;  870 

Quipile,  B.  10;  1630. 

Quita-palanca,  Mq.  5;  92 

Quito,  hacienda,  B.  6 ;  135,  354 

Quito,  R,  Ch. ;  Atrato,  R 

Raisal,  Alto,  B.  8 ;  117 

RuiiBiQtf,  Tj.  6;  42,290. 

Ramiriqui,  Tj.  6  ;  8024 

RAPOSO,  Bv.  2  ;  3333 ;  540 

Raposo,  Bv.  2;  1382. 

Raquira,  Tj.  4;  4727. 

Recetor  t,  Cs.  5;  285. 

Remedies,  I.  2 ;  15S4 

Remedies,  An.  5;  1572. 

REMOUNO,  Sm.  4;  6036. 

Remolino  *  t,  Sm.  4 ;  2020 ;  28 

Remolino  t,  An.,  on  Nare  R 

Retiro,  hacienda,  B.  7 ;  308 

Retire,  An.  6;  6115. 

Retiro,  Mp.  2 ;  761. 

Retiro,  Nv.  2;  1750. 

Riachuelo,  Sc.  3;  2136. 

Ribera,  hacienda,  Cc.  7 ;  463 

Ricaurte,  B.  1 ;  1929. 

RICACKTE,  Td.  3 ;  19,378. 


Rioclaro,  Bv.  1 ;  1855. 
Rio  de  Jesus,  I.  10;  1615. 
Rio-de-6ro,  Oc.  1 ;  1372. 
Itiofrio,  Bv.  3 ;  1321. 
RIOHACHA,  Rh. ;  17,247; 
RIOHACHA,  Rh.  1 ;  11,005. 
Riohacha  ••  t,  Rh.  1 ;  2974 
RtoNEGKO,  An.  6 ;  82,533. 
Rionegro  »  t,  An.  6 ;  8099. 
Rionegro,  Pm.  2;  4013. 
Rioseco,  B.  8 ;  3447. 
Rioseco,  R ;  Magdalena,  R  r. 
Riosiicio,  Cc.  5;  4104 
RiovK-jo,  Mp.  4;  806. 
Robada,  Sc.  2;  513a 
R6ble,  Cc.  3; 
Rdble,  B.  5; 
Rocha,  Ct.  1 ;  527. 
ROLDANIIXO,  Bv.  8;  8535. 
Roldanillo  »  t,  Bv.  3;  4800; 
Rosal,  Pp.  2 ;  8498. 
ROSARIO,  Pm.  8 ;  3710. 
Rosario't,  Pm.  8;  3108. 
Rosdrio,  Rh.  2;  186. 
Ruiz,  Paramo,  Mq.  1 ; 


342 


371 

126 


403 


215 


Sabaleta,  R,  Ch. ;  Pacific. 

Sabaletas,  An.  6 ;  1670. 

Sabaletas,  hacienda,  Cc.  7;  459 

Sabaletas,  R,  Cc.  7;  Cauca,  R  r.;  459 

Sabaletas,  R,  Cc.  1;  Cauca,  R  r.;  512 

Sabana,  R.,  I. ;  Pacific. 

Sabana  de  Bogotd ;  126 

Sabana-grande,  Sb.  3 ;  1546. 

Sabana-larga,  An.  3;  948. 

SABANA-LABGA,  Sb.  2 ;  12,636. 

Sabana-larga  *  t,  Sb.  2  ;  5070. 

Sabaneta,  Ct.  6 ;  322. 

SABANILLA,  Sb. ;  151,950. 

Sabanlllat,  Sb.  1;  30 

Sabcga,  I.  6  (pop.  not  known). 

Saboyd,  Vz.  2 ;  4475. 

Sacaojal,  An.  9 ;  1963. 

Sachica,  Tj.  4;  893. 

Sahagun,  Ct.  5;  3497. 

Salado,  Bv.  1 ;  1378. 

Salahdnda,  Ps.  4;  473. 

SALAMiNA,  An.  7 ;  40,899. 

Salamina  t,  An.  7 ;  7559. 

Salamina,  Sm.  4;  409. 

SALAZAE,  Pm.  9 ;  73ia 

Salazar  *  t,  Pm.  9 ;  4631. 

Salina,  Td.  2 ;  1150. 

Salitre,  B.  8;  123 

Sal6a,  Vd.  2 ;  170. 

Samaca,  Tj.  1 ;  4204 

Samaniego,  Pa  5 ;  2009. 

Sambrano,  Ct  2 ;  470. 

Sampues,  Ct.  5 ;  3401. 

San  Agustln,  Ct  2 ;  94 

San  Agustin,  R,  B.  1 ;  San  Francisco,  R  I. ;  154 

San  Andres,  An.  3;  1158. 

San  Andres,  Ct.  5;  5511. 

SAN  ANDERS,  Ct.  8  ;  1915. 

San  Andres  *  t,  Ct  8 ;  1275. 

San  Andres*  t  ,  Pm.  4;  6389. 

San  Antero,  Ct.  6 ;  907. 

San  Antdnio,  B.  10;  1231. 

San  Antdnio  (ruins),  B.  10 :  351 

San  Antdnio,  Nv.  3  ;  2625. 

San  Antdnio,  Oc.  1 ;  511. 

San  Antdnio  *  t,  Sm.  5;  3084 

San  Bartotome,  An.  5 ;  307. 

San  Basllio,  Ct  7;  477. 

San  Benito,  Ct.  5 ;  966. 

San  Benito,  Ct.  7 ;  1644. 

San  Benito,  Vz.  1 ;  2196. 

San  Bernardo,  Ct  6;  272. 

San  Bernardo,  Oc.  1 ;  244 

Saw  Cal'tsto,  Oc.  1 ;  383. 


582 


APPENDIX. 


San  Carlos,  An.  4 ;  760. 

San  Carlos,  I.  5 ;  1111. 

San  Cayetdno,  Ct.  7  ;  427. 

San  Cayetano,  Pin.  10 ;  982. 

San  Cristoval,  An.  1 ;  1467. 

San  Estanislao,  Ct.  7;  2300. 

San  Fanstino,  Pm.  10 ;  544. 

San  Felipe  de  Barajas,  fort,  Ct  1 ;  43 

San  Felix,  I.  2;  515. 

San  Fernando,  Mp.  1 ;  714. 

San  Fernando,  Sm.  3 ;  419. 

San  Francisco,  R.,  R  1 ;  Bogota,  R.  I. ;         164 

San  Francisco,  I.  10;  4885. 

San  Jacinto,  Ct.  2;  2479. 

San  Jer6nimo,  An.  9 ;  2353. 

SANJIL,  Sc.  6;  32,848. 

Sanjil  •  i,  Sc.  6 ;  11,528. 

San  Jorje,  R.,  Mp. ;  Cauca,  R.  I. 

SAN  Jost,  Pm.  10;  10,259. 

San  Jose  *  i,  Pm.  10;  5741. 

San  Joso,  Ps.  2;  3000. 

SAN  JUAN,  Ch.  2 ;  21,052. 

San  Juan,  Cc.  5;  1559. 

San  Juan,  R.,  An.  2;  Cauca,  R.  I. 

San  Juan,  R.,  Bv. ;  Daqua,  R. 

San  Juan,  R.,  I. ;  Pacific. 

San  Juan,  R.,  Ch.  ;  Pacific. 

San  Juan,  Rh.  2,  is  Cesar. 

San  Juan,  R.,  Mq.  1,  is  the  Coello. 

San  Lazaro,  mount,  Ct.  1 ;  43 

San  Lorenzo,  I.  2;  1777. 

San  Lucia,  R.,  I.  ;  Pacific. 

San  Luis,  Mq.  4;  3436. 

San  Mdrcos,  Ct.  5;  754. 

San  Marcos,  R.,  Cc.  7;  Tulua,  R.  r. ;  491 

San  Marcos,  hacienda,  Bv.  1 ;  526 

SAN  MARTIN,  B.  11 ;  2870 ;  240 

San  Martin  t,  B.  11 ;  668. 

San  Motto,  An.  3 ;  656. 

San  MigmL,  I.  4  (pop.  not  known). 

San  Miguol,  Pm.  3 ;  2900. 

San  Migu&l,  I.  13;  1941. 

San  Miyuel,  Rh.  1 ;  116. 

San  Migu61,  R.,  Me. ;  Putumayo,  R.  r. 

San  Miguel,  Cc.  3 ;  436,  462 

San  Nicholas,  Ct  6 ;  849. 

San  Ondfre,  Ct.  9 ;  2659. 

San  Pablo,  Ps.  2 ;  1208. 

San  Pablo,  I.  2 ;  730. 

San  Pablo,  Mp.  4;  233 ;  72 

San  Pedro,  An.  8 ;  4666. 

San  Pedro,  Cs.  5;  128. 

San  P6dro,  Cc.  1 ;  2137;  501 

San  Pedro,  Oc.  1 ;  342. 

San  Pelayo,  Ct.  3 ;  1481. 

San  Sebastidn,  An.  9 ;  821. 

San  Sebastian,  Ct.  6 ;  367. 

San  Sebastian,  Sm.  3;  800. 

San  Sebastian,  Mp.  2 ;  338. 

San  Sebastian,  Vd.  1 ;  333. 

Santa  Ana,  Ct.  1 ;  425. 

Santa  Ana,  Mq.  5;  2153. 

Santa  Ana,  Sm.  3 ;  708. 

Santa  Ana,  Vz.  3;  2153. 

Santa  Barbara,  An.  6 ;  2225. 

Santa  Catalina,  Ct.  1 ;  902. 

Santafo,  B.  1,  is  Bogota. 

Santafe,  I.  10;  1076. 

Santa  Librada,  Nv.  5;  2265. 

Santa  Maria,  I.  8 ;  2120. 

Santo  Mar'ia,  I.  6 ;  145. 

SANTAMARTA,  Sm. ;  36,485. 

SANTAMAKTA,  Sm.  1;  5774. 

Santamarta  •"  t,  Sm.  1 ;  4340 ;  27 

SANTAND&R,  Pp.  5;  19,789. 

SANTA  ROSA,  An.  8;  32,851. 

Santa  R6sa  *  t,  An.  8 ;  4990. 

Santa  Rdsa  t,  B  12 ;  2698. 

Santa  R6sa,  Ct.  1 ;  903. 

SANTA  ROSA,  Td. ;  89,042. 


Santa  R6sa  •  t,  Td. ;  4934. 

Santiago,  Ct.  5 ;  517. 

Santiago,  Cs.  6;  203. 

Santiago,  Pm.  9;  1249. 

SANTIAGO,  I.  10;  33,864 

Santiago  •  t,  1. 10 ;  6121. 

Santo  Domingo,  An.  1 ;  2236. 

Santo  Tomas,  Sb.  3 ;  2404. 

SANTOS,  I.  11;  17,550. 

Santos  •  t,  I.  11 ;  6223. 

Santos,  Pm.  7 ;  2004. 

Santuario,  B.  6 ;  13f> 

Santuario,  An.  4;  2706. 

San  Vicente,  An.  6 ;  5369. 

&m  Vicente,  Sc.  7;  88. 

San  Zendn,  Sm.  3 ;  813. 

Sapo,  Ct. ;  53 

Sapuyes,  Ps.  5;  1493. 

Sajandi,  R.,  Ps. ;  Patia,  R.  I 

Sarabita,  R.,  Vz.,  is  the  Fuquene. 

Sarare,  R.,  Cs. ;  Apure,  R.  r. 

Sardinata,  R.,  Pm.  ;  Zulia,  R.  I 

Sarg6nto,  A.,  B.  8;  103 

Saria,  R.,  Ch. ;  Pacific. 

Sartinajal,  hacienda,  Cc.  7 ;  461 

Sasaima,  B.  8;  2255. 

Sativa-ndrte  *  t,  Td. ;  4240. 

Sativa-sur,  Td. ;  1048. 

Saifa,  R.,  Pp.  4;  Pacific. 

Seco,  R.,  B.  8;  Magdalena,  R.  r. ;  342 

Sedros,  R..  Pa  2 ;  Pacific. 

Serinza,  Td.  1 ;  2766. 

Serrezuela,  B.  6;  1094;  133 

Serviez,  B.  11 ;  23a 

Servita,  Pm.  3;  596. 

Sesquile,  B.  9 ;  2775. 

Siachoque,  Tj.  1 ;  3001. 

Sierra,  Pp.  1 ;  2643. 

Silos,  Pm.  1 ;  2514. 

Silvia,  Pp.  1 ;  3728. 

Simacota,  Sc.  1 ;  7022. 

Simancas,  Oc.  1. 

Simana,  Oc.  1 ;  684 

Simijaca,  B.  13 ;  8828. 

Simijaca,  R.,  Vz.,  is  the  Fuquene. 

Simitarra,  R.,  Mp. ;  Magdalena,  K.  I. 

SIMITI,  Mp.  4 ;  4437. 

Simiti  «  t,  Mp.  4;  1980. 

Sinc6,  Ct  4;  4054. 

SINCELEJO,  Ct  9 ;  15,148. 

Sincelejo  •  t,  Ct  9 ;  6046. 

SipS,  Ch.  2;  2021. 

Siquima,  B.  5 ;  2006. 

Site,  Vz.  1,  is  Cite. 

Sltio  nuevo,  Sm.  4;  2501. 

Soacha,  B.  1;  2918;  273 

SOATA,  Td.  4;  22,374. 

Soata»t,  Td.  4;  9015. 

S6cha,  Td.  3 ;  2866. 

SOCORRO,  Sc. ;  157,085;  345 

SOCOBKO,  Sc.  1 ;  41,761. 

Socdrro  **  t,  Sc.  1 ;  15,015. 

Socota,  Td.  3 ;  6306. 

SOGAMOSO,  Td.  5;  42,854 

Sogamoso  *  t,  Td.  5  ;  6369. 

Sogamoso,  R.,  Sc. ;  Magdalena,  R.  r. 

Solano,  R.,  Ch. ;  Pacific. 

Soldddo,  Rh.  1 ;  210. 

Soldano,  R.,  Mq.  and  Nv. ;  Magdalena,  R.  I. 

Soleddd,  An.  2 ;  398. 

SOLEDAD,  Sb.  3 ;  10,456. 

Soledad  •  t,  Sb.  3  ;  3992. 

Solimoes,  R.,  is  the  Amazon. 

Somondoco,  Tj.  3 ;  5270. 

Sona,  I.  10 ;  2652. 

Sonsdn't,  An.  7;  10,244. 

SOPETRAN,  An.  9 ;  17,763. 

Sopetran  •  j,  An.  9;  4673. 

Sopo,  B.  3 ;  2531. 

Sora,  Tj.  1 ;  899. 


APPENDIX. 


583 


Soraca,  Tj.  1 ;  2275. 

Sotaquira,  Tj.  1 ;  5218. 

SOTO,  I.  12 ;  15,569. 

Suaita  t,  Se.  5  ;  4993. 

Suarez,  R.,  is  the  Fuquene. 

Suaza,  R.,  Nv. ;  Magdalena,  R.  r. 

Suba,  B.  1 ;  1072 ;  242 

Subachdque,  B.  6 ;  3148. 

Sucio,  R.,  Ch. ;  Atrato,  R.  r. 

Sucre,  Mp.  2 ;  1805. 

Suesca,  B.  4;  3389. 

Sugamuxi,  Td.,  is  Sogamdso. 

Sumapaz,  P.,  B. ;  316 

Sumapaz,  R.,  B. ;  Magdalena,  R.  r.  ;  316 

SuriA,  Cc.  5;  8434. 

Supia*t,  Cc.  5;  2TT1. 

Supia,  R.,  Cc. ;  Cauca,  R.  I, 

Suratai,  Pm.  2;  2010. 

Susa,  B.  13;  3754 

Susac6n,  Td.  4 ;  2875. 

Suta,  B.  13;  2936. 

SAta,  Tj.  4;  3172. 

Sutatensa,  Tj.  3 ;  5022. 

Tabio,  B.  3;  2588;  242 

Tablas,  I.  11 ;  6209. 

Tablazo,  Rh.  2 ;  718. 

Tablazo,  hill,  Cc.  7;  499 

Tabldn,  Ps.  1 ;  2247. 

TABOGA,  I.  13 ;  3353. 

Taboga,  I.  13 ;  789. 

Tacaloai,  Ct.  4;  282. 

Tacam6cho,  Ct.  2 ;  543. 

Tacasaluma,  Mp.  2 ;  429. 

Tachira,  R.,  Pm. ;  Zulia,  R.  r. 

Tadd,  Ch.  2 ;  6388. 

Taganga,  Sm.  1;  177. 

TAGUANA,  Cs.  5;  2329. 

Tagudna,  Cs.  5 ;  205. 

Talaigua,  Mp.  1 ;  774 

Tamalameque,  Oc.  1 ;  726 ;  513 

Tamana,  R.,  Ch.  2;  San  Juan,  R.  I 

Tamandi,  R.,  Bv. ;  Cauca,  R.  I. 

Tamara,  Cs.  1 ;  1880. 

Tambo,  Ps.  1 ;  2110. 

Tambo,  Pp.  1 ;  3426. 

Tame,  Cs.  3 ;  633. 

Taminango,  Ps.  1 ;  3428. 

Tammez,  Cas.  (Tunebo  Indians). 

Tapias,  Mq.  1 ;  356 

Tasco,  Td.  5;  2675. 

Tauza,  B.  13 ;  1615. 

Telembi,  R.,  Ps. ;  Patia,  B.  I. 

Ten,  Cs.  1 ;  452. 

Tena,  B.  10;  1386;  353 

TENERIFE,  Sm.  5;  9032. 

Tenerife,  Sm.  5;  2011. 

Tenjo,  B.  6 ;  4016. 

Tenza,  Tj.  2 ;  6812. 

Teorama,  Oc.  ;  1365. 

Tequendama  (Falls),  B. ;  274,  /.  281 

Tequendama,  hacienda,  B. ;  273 

Tequia,  Pm.  6 ;  2866. 

Ternura,  Ct.  1 ;  47 

Tesca,  lagoon,  Ct.  1 ;  46 

Tetdn,  Ct.  2  ;  567. 

Tibacui,  B.  7;  575;  301 

Tibacui,  Mt,  B.  7;  817 

Tibana,  Tj.  6 ;  6250.  . 

Tibana,  R.,  Tj.,  is  the  Boyaca. 

Tibasosa,  Td.  5 ;  3093. 

Tibirita,  B.  4:  8637. 

Tiemble-cul,  hill,  Cc.  7;  493 

Tierra  Bomba,  island,  Ct.  1;  42 

TIMANA,  Nv.  5;  19,694. 

Timana,  Nv.  5;  3448. 

Timbio,  Pp.  1 ;  4624. 

Timbio,  R.,  Pp.  ;  Patia,  R.  I. 

Timbiqui,  Pp.  4;  2178. 

Tinjaca,  Tj.  4 ;  3002. 


Titiribi,  An.  2 ;  4598. 

Toca,  Tj.  1 ;  2467. 

TOCAIMA,  B.  12;  20,666. 

Tocaima  *  t,  B.  12 ;  6574;  343 

Tocancipa,  B.  3;  1816. 

Toche,  Mq.  1 ;  360 

Toche,  R.,  Mq.,  is  the  Coello,  R. 

Tochecito,  R,  Mq. ;  Coello,  R.  r. ;  860 

Togui,  Vz.  3 ;  1882. 

Tolo,  I.  10 ;  1138. 

Toledo,  Pm.  1 ;  1408. 

Tolima,  Mq.  1 ;  886 

Tolima,  Mt.,  Mq. ;  215,  336 

Tolii,  Ct.  9 ;  2054 

Tolii-viejo,  Ct.  9 ;  1093. 

Tomarrazon,  Rh.  1 ;  820. 

T6mo,  R.,  Cs. ;  Orindco,  B.  I, 

T6na,  Pm.  2;  1062. 

Topaga,  Td.  5  ;  1446. 

Topaipi,  B.  14;  1395. 

Toribio,  Pp.  5;  1077. 

TOKO,  Cc.  6 ;  7203. 

Toro  *  t,  Cc.  6 ;  4314. 

T6ta,  Td.  5;  3747. 

Tota,  L.,  Td. ;  235 

TrcmqulUas,  I.  10 ;  368. 

Trapiche,  Pp.  2 ;  3542. 

Tratino,  R.,  Tj.,  is  the  Boyaca. 

Trigo,  A.,  B.  8;  117 

Trinidad,  Cs.  1 ;  111. 

Trinidad,  I.  7;  4092. 

Trompitas,  T.  6,  is  Turmeque'. 

Truando,  R.,  Ch.  1 ;  Atrato,  R.  L 

Tua,  R.,  Cs. ;  Meta,  R.  I 

Tubara,  Sb.  1;  1880. 

Tucutl,  I.  6;  106. 

Tuira,  R.,  I. ;  Sabana,  R.  I. 

TULUA,  Cc.  7 ;  6450. 

Tulua  *  t,  Cc.  7 ;  4352 ;  499 

Tulua,  R.,  Cc.  7  ;  Cauca,  R.  r. ;  491 

TUMACO,  Ps.  4;  2973. 

Tumaco**,  Ps.  4;  2500. 

TUNDAMA,  Td.  ;  152,758. 

Tunia,  Pp.  1 ;  2927. 

TUNJA,  Tj. ;  162,959. 

TUNJA,  Tj.  1 ;  43,334. 

Tiuvja«*i,  Tj.  1;  5022. 

Tuparo,  R.,  Cs. ;  Orinoco,  R.  I. 

Tupes,  Vd.  1 ;  446. 

TUQUEERES,  Ps.  5;  20,734 

Tiiquerres  *  t,  Ps.  5 ;  6104 

Turbuco,  Ct.  1;  1284;  47 

Turbana,  Ct.  1 ;  567. 

Turbo,  Ch.  1;  916. 

Turmequ6  *  t,  Tj.  6;  7197. 

Tuta,  Tj.  1 ;  3168. 

Tutaza,  Td.  1 ;  533. 

Ubala,  B.  9 ;  1466. 

Ubaque,  B.  2;  3399;  249 

UBATE,  B.  13 ;  38,286. 

Ubate  *  t,  B.  13 ;  6754 

Ullucos,  R.,  Nv. ;  Paez,  R.  r. 

Umbita,  Tj.  6;  3545. 

Una,  R.,  Sn. ;  Guaviare,  R.  I. 

Une,  B.  2;  2326;  254 

Union,  Nv.  1 ;  1702. 

Una-gato,  Cc.  3;  413 

Upia,  R.,  Cs. ;  Meta,  R.  1. ;  285 

Upia,  B.  11 ;  246. 

Ure,  Ct.  5;  585. 

Urrao  t,  An.  3  ;  2204 

Ummlta,  Rh.  2 ;  450. 

Usaquen,  B.  1 ;  2793. 

Usiacurt,  Sb.  2 ;  1406. 

Usme,  B.  1 ;  1982. 

Uvita,  Td.  4;  3867. 

Vahos,  An.  6;  3034. 
Valencia,  Vd.  1 ;  640. 


584 


APPENDIX. 


Valle,  Mq.  1 ;  2601. 

Valle,  Sc.  6;  4006. 

Valle,  Vz.  1;  10,544;  513 

Valle  de  Jesus,  Vz.  1,  in  Valle. 

VALLE  DUPAR,  Vd. :  14,032. 

VAU.E  DUPAB,  Vd.  1 ;  7629. 

Valle  Dupar  «  *,  Vd.  1 ;  2970. 

Val-paraiso,  hacienda,  Cc.  1 ;  605 

Vega,  B.  5;  3521. 

Vega,  Pp.  2;  1478. 

V6ga,  hacienda,  Bv.  3,  is  fictitious;  400 

VELEZ,  Vz. ;  109,421. 

VELEZ,  Vz.  1 ;  64,024;  513 

Velez  *•  t,  Vz.  1 ;  11,178. 

Venadillo,  Mq.  2 ;  3136. 

Venddos,  Vd.  1 ;  179. 

Ventaquemada,  Tj.  6 ;  4393. 

Vergara,  B.  8;  1968. 

Vetas,Pm.  2;  616. 

Vetltta,  An.  6;  630. 

Vichada,  R,  Cs. ;  Orinoco,  R.  I. 

Victoria,  Cc.  3;  1813;  390 

Victoria,  Mq.  5 ;  298. 

Vieja,  R.,  Cc. ;  Cauca,  R.  r. ;  375 

Vljes,  Bv.  1;  1160;  18,  526 

Vijes,  R.,  Bv.  1 ;  Cauca,  R.  I ;  18 

Villa-nueva,  Ct  1 ;  1323. 

Villa-nueva,  Rh.  2;  999. 

Vllla-vicencio  t,  B.  11 ;  341. 

Villa-vieja  t,  Nv.  1 ;  4289. 

Villetat,  B.  8;  5417;  121 

Vinagre,  R.,  Pp.  1 ;  Cauca,  R  r. ;  19 

Viot£B.  12;  467. 

Viracacha,  Tj.  6;  2231. 

Voladdr,  Mt,  B.  12;  344 


Volcan,  R,  An. ;  Magdalena,  R.  I 
Volcanclto,  Tambo,  Mq.  1 ;  368 

Vuelta,  B.  8;  91 

Yacopi,  B.  14;  1777. 

Yacuanqufir,  Ps.  1 ;  3219. 

Yaguard  t,  Nv.  2 ;  353a 

Yarumal,  An.  8 ;  3561. 

Yascual,  Ps.  5;  1209. 

Yati,  Mp.  2 ;  547. 

Yavisa  *,  I.  6 :  287. 

Yerbabuena,  Tambo,  Mq.  1 ;  368 

Yesal,  Cc.  7 ;  498 

Yolomb6,  An.  5;  786. 

Yotdco,  Bv.  1 ;  1334. 

Yucal,  Ct  7 ;  495. 

Yumbo,  Bv.  1;  1374;  524 

Yurbaco,  now  Turbaco,  Ct. 

Yurmanyui,  Pp.  4 ;  2098. 

ZAPATOCA,  Sc.  7;  9112. 

Zapatoca  M,  Sc.  7 ;  7133. 

Zapatosa  *  t,  Cs.  5 ;  606. 

Zaragoza  t.  An.  5;  1343. 

Zaragoza,  village,  Cc.  3; 

Zaragoza,  hacienda,  B.  10;  351 

Zarzal,  Cc.  3,  is  Libruida. 

Zea,  An.  8;  1152. 

Zetaquira,  Tj.  5;  1466. 

Zinu,  R.,  Ch. ;  Caribbean  Sea. 

Zipaquird  is  Cipaquira. 

Zdnza,  Cc.  1 ;  505 

Zdnza,  R.,  Cc.  1 ;  Cauca,  R.  r. ;  505 

Zulia,  R,  Sd. ;  Lake  Maracaibo. 


V.  MAIL  ROUTES. 

The  following  table  gives  the  mail  routes  of  New  Granada  as  fixed  by  the  de- 
cree of  November  19,  1853.  The  distances  are  given  in  miles,  together  with 
the  time  allotted,  both  going  and  returning. 


I.  BOGOTA  TO  THE  ATL 

1.   BoqoU'l  to                Hours. 

ANTIC. 

10  ret'g. 
9  
5  .... 
5  .... 

Miles. 
28.0 
18.6 
15.5 
15.5 
82.8 
71.5 
28.0 
97.9 
59.0 
59.0 
43.5 
54.4 
4.7 
23.3 
17.1 
4.7 
7.8 

59.0 
20.2 
102.5 

81.1 

34.2 

59.0 
87.0 
37.3 
87.0 

II.  BOGOTA  TO 
5.  Bogotd.  to 
Cipiquird  

PUERTO  NAOIOKAL. 
..   llgo'g.    9  ret'g. 

Miles 
31.1 
26.4 
24.9 
24.9 
12.4 
18.6 
18.6 
17.1 
12.4 
15.5 
28.5 
12.4 
9.3 
28.0 
97.9 
40.4 

15.5 

17.1 
83.9 

52.8 

52.8 

59.0 
24.9 
21.7 

88.8 

Villeta  
Gruaduas  
Honda  

..     6  ... 
..     5  ... 
..     6  

Ubate  
Chiquinquird  
Puente  Nacional 

..  10  ....  9  
..  11  ....  9  .... 
..  9  ....  8  .... 

Xare  
Hocadel  Carare  
Barranca-bermeja.  .  .  . 
Puerto  Nacional  

..  13  ... 
..  11  .... 
..    5  ... 
..  17  .... 
14 

29  
26  .... 
11  .... 
35  .... 
22 

Suaita  
Oiba  
Socorro  

..  6  ....  6  .... 
..  7  ....  6  .... 
..6  G 

San-jil  

..  4  ....  4  .... 

VIompos  

.  .  11  

22  

Aratoca  
Piedecuesta  

..     B  ....     5  .... 
..  11  ....  10  .... 
4             4 

Plato  

..    9  .... 

17  .... 

San  Antonio  

.  .  10  
..     1  ... 
g 

2  .... 

Bucaramanga  
Suratd  

..  3  ....  3  .... 
.  .  10  10  

Holedad  

..     5  .... 

6  .... 

Ocana  

.  .  37  ....  37  .... 
14           14 

1  larranquilla  

.-•  .ibauill:i  

2.  Remolino  to 

..     1  
..     3  .... 

10 

3  
4  .... 

10 

6.  Socorro  to 
Barichara  
Zapatosa  

..  6  ....  6  .... 
..  8  ....  8  .... 

s.mta  Marta.  
Uiohacha.  

3.  Cdknnar  to 

..     5  .... 
..  40  .... 

5  .... 
40  .... 

Barranca-bermeja. 

7.  Velez  to 
Puerto  del  Carare  .  .  . 
Boca  del  Carare  

.  .  32  32  

..  26  ....  35  .. 
.  .  25  29  .... 

Cartagena  

4.  Banco  to 
Chiriguand  
Valle  Dupar  
Cosar  

..  12  .... 

..  26  .... 
..  39  .... 
.  .  16  

11  .... 

26  .. 
39  .... 
16  

III.  BOGOTA  TO  VEXEZITELA. 
8.  Bogota,  to 
Chocontd  .  .  19  .  .    .95! 

Tunneque  

..  9  ...  9  ... 

Tunja.  

..7  8  . 

Riohacha....'.  .  . 

..  32  .. 

32  .. 

Santa  Rosa.  .  . 

.  .  13  14  .. 

APPENDIX. 


585 


Hoars.        Hoars.  Miles. 

Sativa-norte 11  12 31.1 

Soata T  ....     T  ....  1S.6 

Concepcion 15 20 43.5 

Pamplona 25 23 62.1 

San  Jose 20 22 51.2 

Rosario 2 2 6.2 

Tachira  (Venezuela) ...     1 1 3.1 

9.  Tunja  to          \ 

Sogamoso 13 13 37.3 

Lobranza-grande 19 19 51.2 

Moreno 25 25 63.T 

Arauca 42 42 118.1 

IV.  BOGOTA  TO  ECUADOR 

10.  Bogota  to 

Mesa 16  ....  13  ....  35.7 

Tocaima 8 9 23.3 

Santa  Rosa 11 13 ? 

Prado 6 5 ? 

Villa-vieja 13  ....  12 ? 

Neiva 7  ....     8 20.2 

YaguarS 8  ....  10 21.7 

Carnicerias. 10 10 24.9 

Paicol 3 3 9.3 

Plata 4 5 9.3 

Popayan 43 47 77.6 

Pasto 71 69 139.8 

Tuquerres. 13 13 34.2 

Ipiales 8 9 24.9 

Tulean  (Ecuador) 4 4 7.8 

V.  BOGOTA  TO  THE  PACIFIC. 

11.  Bogota  to 

Mesa 16  ....  13  ....  35.7 

Tocaima 8 8 23.3 

Piedras 10 10 31.1 

Ibague 9 9 28.0 

Cartago 47  ....  42 87.0 

Tulua. 16 16  ....  49.7 

Buga 4  ....     4  ....  12.4 

Palmira 9  9 26.4 

Call 7  ....     6  ....  18.6 

Buenaventura 26 26 68.4 

VT.  WESTERN  LOCAL  WATTSS. 

12.  Cartagena  to 

Mahates 12 12  ....  34.2 

Carmen 5....     5....  ? 

Corozal 8  ....  -  8  ....  ? 

Sincelejo 4  ....     3 9.3 

China 13  ....  13  ....  34.2 

Lorica 17  ....  17  ....  46.6 

13.  Chiniito 

Cienega-de-oro 10 12 ? 


14.  Cartagena  to 

Sabanalarga 20  ....  20  ....     55.9 

Soledad S  ..   .     8 23.3 

Barranquilla 1  1 4.7 

Sabanilla 3 3 7.8 

15.  Simit'i  to 
Pnerto-nacional 13 13 


46.6 

16.  Medellinto 

Santa  Rosa  (An.) 17  . .  .^  17 37.3 

Amalfi IS  ...T  18  ....  40.4 

Remedies 19 19 43.5 

Zaragoza. 16 17 34.2 

Majagual 32  ....  73  ....  lll.S 

MaganguJ 19 53 80.8 

Tacaloa 8 16 24.9 

Mompos 16 4 21.7 

17.  Fare  to 

Remolino  (An.) 8 3 12.4 

Marinilla 27 23 77.7 

Rionegro 1 1  3.1 


Hours.        Hours.  Miles. 

Medellin 7  ....     6  ....  18.6 

Sopetran 11   ....  11  ....  28.5 

Antioquia 3 4 7.8 

Urrao 17  ....  17  ....  40.4 

Bebara. 31 38  ....  55.9 

Quibdo 26  ....  26  ....  62.2 

18.  Antioquia  to 

Santa  Rosa  (An.) 16 16 40.4 

19.  Medellin  to 

Amaga. 9 9 21.7 

Supia 25 25 52.8 

Ansenna-nuevo 30 SO 71.5 

Cartago 3 8 7.8 

Toro 7  ....     7  ....  18.6 

Roldanillo 9  ....     9  ....  24.9 

Call 27  ....  27  ....  62.1 

Quilichao 9  ....     9  ....  24.9 

Popayan 26  ....  26  ....  55.9 

20.  Cartago  to 

Ansenna-nuevo 3 8 7.8 

Novita 22 22 52.8 

Quibdo 32 52 124.3 

21.  Rionegro  to 

Abejorral 12 12 28.0 

Sonson. 6 6 140 

Salamina 22 22 40.4 

Supia 11  ....  11  ....  20.2 

22.  Honda  to 

Ambalema 14 14 43.5 

Ibague 15 15  ....  46.6 

Guamo 15 16 ? 

Chaparral 28 28 ? 

23.  Buenaventura  to 

Guapi 50  ....  50  ....  124.3 

Izcuande 6 6 15.0 

Barbacoas 35 28 77.7 

Tuquerres 52 52 83.9 

24.  Barbacoas  to 

Tumaco 20 20  ....  52.S 

25.  Pasto  to 

Mocoa ...  71 71 


55.9 

26.  Popayan  to 

Almaguer 80 80  ....     65.2 

27.  Tocaima  to 

Espinal 10  ....  10 

Guamo 2 2 

Purificacion 6 6 

Natagaima 6  ....     6 

Villa  Vieja. 9 9 


31.1 
6.2 
18.6 
18.6 
28.0 

VII.  ROUTES  EAST  OF  THE  MAGDALENA,  BE- 
GINNING AT  THE  NOETH. 

28.  Plata,  Nv.,  to 

Pital 7 9 1S.6 

Garzon 10 10  ....  21.7 

Jigante 6 6 15.5 

Xeiva 18 IS 52.8 

29.  Fusagasugd  to 

Mesa 17  ....  17  ....    38.8 

30.  Boyotato 

Fusagasugd 11 11 24.9 

31.  Bogota  to 

Funza 4  ....     4  ... 

Facatativa 5  ....     5  ... 

Ambalema 20 20  ... 

32.  Bogota  to 

Caquesa 11  ....  11  ... 

Villavicencio 30 30  ... 

San  Martin 20 20  ... 

33.  Moreno,  Cs.,  to 

Cafifi 24  ....  24 


12.4 
15.5 
43.5 

24.9 

77.7 
52.3 

55.9 


586 


APPENDIX. 


34.  Moreno,  C&,  to  Honm.      Hoars. 
Zapatosa 13 13  . 


Miles. 

37.3 


35.  Moreno,  C«.,  to 

Mnneque 15 16 87.3 

Chita 4 4 9.3 

Soata 21 21 46.0 

36.  Labranza-grande,  Cs.,  to 
Recetor 18  ....  18 


37.3 

37.  Cipaquirii  to 

Palma 19  ....  19  ....     49.7 

38.  CipaquirA  to 
Guatavita 11 


11 


342 

39.  CipaquirA  to 

Chocontd 12  ....  13  ....  87.3 

Guateque 8 8 249 

40.  ChocontA  to 

Ubatd 10 10 28.0 

Muzo 19 19 55.9 

41.  Tunjato 

Garagoa 17  ....  17  ....  46.6 

Miraflores 10  ....  10  ....  24.9 

42.  Tunja  to 

Leiva T 7....  18.6 

MoniauirA 8  ....     8 21.7 

Puente  Nacional 3 8 9.8 

Velez 5  ....  5  ....  12.4 


43.  Soyamoso,  Td.,  to  H™.      Hours.  MUes. 

Santa  Rosa,  Td 7 7  18.6 

Charala 16 16 45.0 

Socorro 7 8 20.2 

44.  Soattito 

Cocui 13  ....  13  ....  249 

45.  Conception  to 

Malaga 2 2 6.2 

Saa  Andrcis 10 10 249 

46.  Pamplona  to 

Bucaramanga 24  ....  27 71.6 

47.  Zapatoca  to 

Jiron 11  ....  11  ....  2aO 

48.  Ocaflato 

Salazar 32 32 

San  Jos6  (Sd.) 12  ....  12 


71.5 
28.0 


VIIL  ISTHMUS  ROUTES. 
These  are  nnder  the  control  of  the  Estado  de 
Panama.  It  is  intended  that  each  distrito  shall 
have  a  post-office,  but  all  is,  as  yet,  unsettled. 
The  principal  offices  are  to  be  at  the  following 
places.  The  distances  of  each  of  these  from 
Panama  is  annexed. 

Panama 0. 

Colon 47.5 

Natd »9.4 

Peso 140.1 

Santos 142.8 

Santiago 155.8 

David 310.7 


CLIMATES   OF 

NEW  GRANADA. 

BY  I. F. HOLT  Off . 

I'nMislu-d  I  iy  Harper 

1866. 

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588  APPENDIX. 


Vn.  ALTITUDES,  CLIMATES,  AND  PRODUCTIONS. 

On  the  opposite  page,  the  space  from  the  top  to  the  bottom  represents  the  three 
miles  of  altitude  that  separate  the  limit  of  perpetual  snow  in  the  tropics  from  the 
level  of  the  sea.  The  left-hand  margin  is  occupied  with  names  of  places  ranged 
at  their  respective  altitudes.  All,  except  four  in  Italics,  are  in  New  Granada. 
Next  is  a  scale  of  English  feet.  The  second  scale  is  of  mean  annual  tempera- 
tures, disposed  in  equal  parts,  and  increasing  downward.  Between  these  scales 
lines  connect  the  altitudes  of  the  places  named  with  their  annual  temperatures, 
which  vary  greatly  from  an  exact  correspondence.  The  third  scale  is  of  En- 
glish miles,  and  the  fourth  the  boiling-point  of  water  at  the  different  altitudes. 

The  remainder  is  divided  into  four  belts  of  vegetation,  in  which  lines  indicate 
the  limits  of  spontaneous  growth  or  profitable  cultivation  of  various  important 
plants. 

It  would  appear,  from  an  inspection  of  this,  that  Bogota  has  an  altitude  of  a  lit- 
tle more  than  8650  feet,  and  a  mean  temperature  considerably  higher  than  might 
be  expected,  58°.  It  is  seen  to  be  less  than  If  miles  above  the  sea,  and  that 
boiling  water  should  have  there  the  temperature  of  nearly  195°.  It  should  be 
too  cold  for  cotton,  cane,  pine-apples,  or  rice,  while  potatoes,  barley,  and  cin- 
chona would  flourish. 

It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  this  table,  which  has  cost  so  much  to  prepare, 
can  not  be  made  more  reliable.  The  range  of  temperature  which  plants  are  ca- 
pable of  enduring  is  drawn  chiefly  from  Boussingault  and  Humboldt.  I  have 
not  often  ventured  to  correct  the  inaccuracies  I  think  I  see  in  them,  except  when 
they  conflict  with  each  other ;  but  such  general  statements  must  necessarily  ba 
but  approximate;  and  a  moderate  degree  of  accuracy  can  be  attained  only  1 
special  observations  made  for  this  purpose.  There  must  be  great  errors  in  tl:.: 
mean  annual  temperatures  of  different  places,  especially  those  in  elevated  re- 
gions, where  observations  have  been  made  chiefly  by  day.  With  all  this,  I  trusf 
no  man  can  look  on  it  without  acquiring  new  and  more  accurate  ideas  of  thj 
tropics. 

In  the  accompanying  map,  the  attempt  is  made  to  exhibit  the  extent  of  thes^ 
climates,  and  to  show  what  part  of  the  surface  of  New  Granada  is  occupied  by 
each.  To  do  this  minutely  in  so  steep  and  broken  a  country  would  requiro 
maps  on  the  largest  scale,  and  the  materials  for  them  are  yet  to  be  collected. 
Small  as  is  the  scale  on  which  the  attempt  is  here  made,  numerous  as  must  be 
the  errors  that  cover  it,  it  can  not  but  be  of  much  utility  in  conveying  general 
ideas.  It  claims  the  indulgence  to  which  all  first  attempts  are  justly  entitled. 

The  following  tables  of  thermometrical  observations  have  their  chief  interest 
from  the  fact  that  no  published  series  is  known  to  exist  that  were  made  in  a  sim- 
ilar location.  They  are  from  the  Valley  of  the  Cauca,  and  mostly  made  at  an 
elevation  of  about  3500  feet.  It  is  difficult  to  obtain  suitable  stations  for  max- 
imum observations,  where  the  instrument  can  be  accessible  and  safe,  in  such  :i 
country.  Mine,  unfortunately,  was  broken  before  comparing  it  with  any  relia- 
ble standard.  If  the  morning  observations  be  found  too  low,  and  those  of  the 
warmest  part  of  the  day  too  high,  I  shall  not  be  surprised.  One  A.M.  obsei ••. .  - 
tion  and  two  P.M.  were  attempted,  and  the  state  of  the  sky  noted  at  each  time. 
F.  signifies  fear,  S.  sun,  and  K.  rain.  For  the  place  of  the  observations  where 
the  date  is  marked  with  an  asterisk,  see  Appendix  VIII.  All  the  others  are  at 
La  Paila,  Cauca. 


590 


APPENDIX. 


THERMOMETER  FOR  MAY,  JUNE,  JULY,  AUGUST,  1853. 


Morning. 

Noon. 

Night. 

Hour. 

o 

Sky. 

Hour. 

0 

Sky. 

Hour. 

» 

Sky. 

May  1 

7 

73 

c. 

2 

76 

R. 

6 

71 

C. 

2 

7 

67 

c. 

3 

79 

— 

6 

74 

F. 

3 

6 

67 

F. 

3 

77 

R. 

7 

71 

R. 

4 

6 

66 

F. 

2 

79 

C. 

9 

69 

F. 

5 

7 

68 

S. 

4 

72 

C. 

7 

70 

R. 

6 

6 

65 

C. 

3 

73 

R. 

6 

69 

C. 

7 

6 

64 

S. 

2 

77 

S. 

6 

73 

F. 

8 

8 

67 

c. 

3 

75 

S. 

6 

74 

F. 

9 

6 

64 

F. 

3 

79 

S. 

6 

75 

F. 

10 

6 

66 

F. 

3 

74 

c. 

6 

70 

C. 

11 

6 

64 

C. 

3 

75 

S. 

6 

73 

F. 

12 

6 

66 

C. 

3 

76 

c. 

6 

69 

R. 

13 

6 

64 

C. 

3 

77 

S. 

6 

71 

F. 

14 

6 

62 

C. 

3 

80 

S. 

6 

76 

F. 

15 

7 

67 

S. 

3 

81 

S. 

6 

74 

R. 

16 

6 

67 

R. 

3 

71 

R. 

8 

68 

C. 

17 

6 

63 

C. 

3 

76 

C. 

6 

74 

C. 

18 

7 

68 

C. 

3 

72 

C. 

6 

71 

C. 

19 

6 

63 

C. 

3 

79 

S. 

6 

75 

F. 

20 

6 

66 

C. 

4 

79 

S. 

7 

72 

R. 

21 

6 

67 

C. 

4 

70 

R. 

7 

68 

R. 

22 

7 

66 

C. 

3 

78 

F. 

7 

71 

C. 

23 

6 

66 

R. 

3 

72 

R. 

6 

67 

R. 

24 

6 

64 

S. 

3 

76 

S. 

6 

71 

C. 

25 

7 

65 

c. 

2 

73 

c. 

6 

68 

R. 

26 

6 

64 

c. 

4 

75 

S. 

6 

72 

C. 

27 

6 

64 

S. 

3 

78 

S. 

6 

74 

C. 

28 

6 

65 

c. 

4 

78 

c. 

6 

71 

R. 

29 

6 

68 

c. 

3 

77 

S. 

7 

70 

F. 

30 

6 

67 

F. 

4 

77 

c. 

6 

75 

R. 

31 

6 

66 

S. 

3 

74 

R. 

6 

71 

C. 

Jane  1 

7 

67 

c. 

4 

79 

S. 

7 

70 

R. 

2 

7 

66 

c. 

3 

79 

S. 

7 

73 

F. 

3 

7 

67 

c. 

3 

79 

S. 

6 

77 

F. 

4 

3 

79 

F. 

6 

77 

F. 

5 

8 

72 

S. 

S. 

6 

80 

F. 

6 

6 

62 

S. 

3 

86 

S. 

6 

73 

F. 

7 

6 

63 

F. 

4 

79 

S. 

6 

76 

F. 

8 

6 

63 

F. 

4 

79 

c. 

6 

75 

C. 

9 

6 

66 

S. 

3 

80 

S. 

6 

72 

R. 

10 

6 

68 

c. 

12 

76 

S. 

6 

76 

F. 

11 

6 

65 

c. 

4 

82 

S. 

6 

76 

C. 

12 

6 

64 

c. 

4 

82 

S. 

6 

74 

F. 

13 

6  , 

66 

c. 

4 

82 

S. 

6 

77 

C. 

14 

4 

66 

F. 

3 

75 

•  S. 

6 

76 

C. 

15 

4 

82 

S. 

6 

74 

C. 

16 

6 

61 

F. 

4 

79 

S. 

10 

67 

F. 

17 

6 

63 

F. 

3 

80 

S.  • 

10 

68 

F. 

18 

6 

66 

C. 

3 

83 

S. 

10 

68 

F. 

19 

7 

68 

S. 

5 

78 

c. 

9 

71 

R. 

20. 

6 

66 

c. 

4 

77 

c. 

10 

69 

F. 

21 

6 

66 

F. 

4 

80 

c. 

10 

70 

R. 

22 

7 

69 

C. 

3 

76 

c. 

23 

4 

81 

S. 

9 

67 

F. 

24 

6 

64 

C. 

4 

80 

S. 

10 

69 

F. 

25 

7 

65 

S. 

4    78 

c. 

11 

68 

C. 

26 

7 

66 

c. 

4 

79 

S. 

10 

64 

F. 

27 

7 

61 

S. 

4 

84 

S. 

10 

67 

F. 

APPENDIX. 


591 


Morning. 

Noon. 

Night. 

Hour. 

o 

Sky. 

Hour. 

o 

Sky. 

Hour. 

° 

Sky. 

June  28* 

6 

61 

F. 

4 

82 

S. 

10 

66 

F. 

29* 

6 

65 

F. 

S. 

10 

71 

F- 

30 

7 

66 

F. 

5 

80 

S. 

9  - 

71 

C. 

July  1 

6 

64 

C. 

4 

80 

C. 

10 

66 

F. 

2 

6 

61 

C. 

4 

84 

S. 

10 

69 

F. 

3 

6 

65 

F. 

4 

82 

S. 

9 

71 

F. 

4 

6 

65 

F. 

3 

82 

S. 

9 

68 

F. 

5 

6 

61 

F. 

3 

84 

S. 

10 

70 

C. 

6  . 

6 

67 

C. 

3 

71 

C. 

10 

67 

E. 

7 

6 

66 

F. 

3 

80 

S. 

10 

68 

F. 

8 

6 

62 

F. 

4 

80 

S. 

10 

68 

C. 

9 

6 

62 

F. 

4 

74 

C. 

10 

66 

F. 

10 

6 

62 

C. 

4 

78 

S. 

10 

67 

F. 

11 

6 

62 

C. 

2 

80 

'.  S. 

10 

67 

F. 

12 

6 

60 

C. 

3 

78 

C. 

10 

70 

C. 

13 

7 

62 

C. 

3 

81 

S. 

11 

67 

F. 

14 

6 

59 

S. 

3 

82 

S. 

9 

66 

F. 

15 

6 

62 

C. 

16 

4 

80 

S. 

11 

70 

F. 

17 

9 

72 

S. 

4 

79 

C. 

9 

69 

C. 

18 

6 

66 

C. 

3 

76 

R. 

10 

67 

C. 

19* 

6 

66 

E. 

2 

78 

S. 

9 

68 

F. 

20* 

6 

64 

S. 

3 

80 

S. 

9 

68 

F. 

21* 

6 

62 

S. 

3 

80 

S. 

9 

69 

F. 

22* 

6 

64 

S. 

12 

81 

S. 

23* 

7 

71 

C. 

3 

78 

C. 

10 

72 

C. 

24* 

7 

67 

C. 

S. 

10 

70 

C. 

25* 

6 

68 

F. 

10 

71 

F. 

26* 

6 

68 

K. 

9 

72 

F. 

27* 

6 

71 

F. 

4 

78 

S. 

9 

71 

F. 

28* 

6 

70 

F. 

3 

70 

S. 

10 

60 

C. 

29* 

6 

58 

C. 

3 

65 

C. 

10 

60 

F. 

30* 

6 

56 

F. 

2 

72 

C. 

10 

70 

F. 

31* 

6 

68 

K. 

3 

78 

C. 

10 

69 

F. 

Aug.  1* 

6 

68 

F. 

10 

70 

F. 

2* 

6 

67 

C. 

3 

73 

C. 

10 

71 

C. 

3* 

6 

65 

C. 

3 

78 

S. 

11 

69 

F. 

4* 

6 

69 

F. 

3 

74 

C. 

11 

68 

C. 

5* 

6 

66 

F. 

3 

73 

C. 

9 

68 

F. 

'  6* 

6 

65 

S. 

3 

66 

S. 

9 

56 

F. 

7* 

6 

56 

C. 

3 

66 

S. 

10 

56 

F. 

8* 

6 

52 

F. 

4 

71 

S. 

9 

58 

C. 

9* 

6 

58 

C. 

3 

S. 

9 

58 

C. 

10* 

6 

55 

C. 

3 

79 

S. 

9 

70 

F. 

11* 

8 

65 

C. 

3 

75 

C. 

9 

70 

•p 

12* 

6 

66 

F. 

3 

79 

S. 

9 

72 

F! 

13* 

6 

66 

F. 

4 

75 

C. 

9 

70 

F. 

14* 

7 

66 

C. 

3 

76 

S. 

9 

70 

F. 

15* 

6 

68 

C. 

S. 

F. 

16* 

6 

62 

C. 

3 

80 

C. 

17* 

10 

69 

F. 

18* 

6 

61 

F. 

3 

82 

S. 

9 

70 

F. 

19* 

6 

68 

F. 

3 

'84 

S. 

20* 

6 

69 

F. 

3 

82 

C. 

9 

70 

F. 

21 

6 

66 

C. 

3 

82 

C. 

9 

69 

E. 

22 

6 

66 

C. 

4 

83 

S. 

10 

71 

F. 

23 

6 

64 

F. 

3 

80 

S. 

10 

70 

C. 

The  following  special  observations  are  of  interest :  May  12, 3  P.  M. ,  76°,  C. ;  4.15  P.  M. ,  70°,  R — 
May  23, 6  P.M.,  67°,  E.— May  24, 1  A.M.,  63°,  C. ;  6  A.M.  64°,  C.— June 24, 1  P.M.,  124°  in  the  sun. 
*  All  but  these  were  made  at  La  Paila. 


592 


APPENDIX. 


VIII.  ITINERARY. 

Names  in  Italics  indicate  visits  to  places,  and  a  return  that  same  day  to  the 
last  place  mentioned  in  SMALL  CAPITALS. 


1852.—  AUGUST. 

16.  A'oviUero. 
22.  Pandi. 

19.  Buga-la-grande. 
20.  Cerrito. 

21.  Off  Sierra  Nevada. 

23.    FUBAGASUGA. 

21.  Call. 

22.  Off  Santa  Marta. 

25.  Chocho. 

26.  Vms. 

Harbor  of  SABANILLA. 

27.  Retiro. 

26.  FERRY. 

•23.  Sabanitta.    Custom-houne. 

2a  Bogota. 

28.  Bolivia. 

'24.  Uarranquilla. 

31.    FUBAGASUGA. 

30.  Vyes. 

25.  Harbor  of  Sabanilla. 

28.  Bongo  in  Cienega  de  Man- 

1853  —  JANUAEY. 

AUGUST. 

teca. 

3.  Chocho. 

3.  Call. 

29.  Barranquilla.                  Da. 

5.  La  Puerto. 

5.  Arroyo-hondo. 

31.  Steam-boat  in  Barranquil- 

1.  Chocho. 

6.  Bolivia. 

11.  La  Puerta,  Boqueron. 

10.  Vijes. 

SEPTBMBEB. 

12.  Passed  Melgar. 

12.  EspinaL 

1.  Eemolino. 

13.  Banks  of  Magdalena. 

13.  Vijes. 

2.  Calamar  and  above. 

14.  Espinal,  Banks  of  the  C'o- 

15.  Cerrito. 

3.  Below  Mompos. 

ello. 

18.  Near  Buga.                   [taa 

4.  Mompos.                         tco. 

15.  Coello,  Ibague. 

19.  San  Pedro,  Tulua,  Sabale- 

5.  Passed  Margarita  and  Ban- 

24.  Palmilla,  Tapias. 

20.  PAIUU 

6.  Puerto-nacional. 

25.  El      Moral,      Buenavista, 

•25.  Cam  Perro. 

7.  Below  San  Pablo. 

Agua-caliente,  Toche. 

26.  Cienega  de  Burro. 

8.  San  Pablo,  Bodega  de  So- 

26.  Gallego,  Yerba-buena,Vol- 

29.  Frisolar,  Caracoli. 

gamoso. 

cancito. 

9.  Passed  Barranca-bermeja. 

27.  Paramo  of  Quindio,  Barci- 

SEPTEMBER. 

10.  Passed  I.  de  Rionuevo  and 

nal,  Boquia,  El  Roble. 

7.  La  Cabana. 

San  Bartolomo. 

28.  Portachuelo,  Canas,  Balsa. 

8.  Chaqueral.                    [elo. 

11.  Remolino-grande,  Nare. 
12.  Aground  above  Nare. 

29.  Piedra  de  Moler,  Cartago. 
31.  Zaragosa,    Hacienda     de 

9.  Libraida,  Paila,  Portachu- 
10.  La  Ribcra. 

13.  Champan  above  Nare. 

Sanchez. 

12.  Picazo,  Las  Minas,  Rio  do 

14  Below  Buenavista. 

San  Marcos,  PlatanaL 

15.  Passed  Buenavista. 

FEBEUABT. 

13.  Tiemble  Cul,  Chorro. 

16.  Below  Conejo. 

1.  Naranjo,  Victoria,  Las  La- 

14  Las  Playas. 

17.  Passed  Conejo. 

jas,  Libraida,  Las  Canas,  El 

16.  JICARMIATA. 

18.  Vuelta,  Honda. 

Medio,  LA  PAILA. 

17.  Guavito. 

22.  Pescaderias,  Cruces,   Sar- 

4  Guavito. 

18.  Chorro. 

gento,  Guaduaa. 

12.  Guavito. 

19.  LA  RIUERA. 

27.  Alto  del  Trigo,  Cune,  Alto 

17.  Medio. 

23.  Yegal 

del  Petaquero,  Villeta,  Mau- 

21. Cam  Perro. 

26.  Sartinajal,  Portachuelo. 

ve,  Salitre. 

26.  Media. 

27.  PAILA. 

28.  Aserradero,  Roble,  BoteUo. 

30.    LlBBAIDA. 

29.  Facatativa,        Serrezuela, 

MARCH. 

Santuario,     Puente-grande, 

1.  Murillo,    Overo,    Buga-la- 

OCTOBEE. 

Fontibon,  BOGOTA.. 

grande,  Tulua,  San  Pedro. 

4.  Portachuelo. 

2.  Buga,  Zonza,  Cenito,  La 

5.  Murillo. 

OCTOBER. 

Merced. 

6.  PAILA. 

6.  Boqueron. 

3.  San  Marcos,  Call. 

11.  Cienega  de  Burro. 

1.  Mont&erraie. 

10.  Palmira. 

14.  Las  Canaa' 

13.  Pena. 

12.  Buga. 

17.  Murillo. 

15.  Boqueron. 

13.  PAIL  A.     . 

18.  Paila.                         [bera. 

18.  Boqueron. 

23.  Libraida, 

24.  Murillo,  Sabaletas,  La  Ri- 

28.  Rio  Arzobispo. 

25.  Tulua,  Tablazo,  Ribera. 

27.  Rio  Fucha. 

ATKLL. 

28.  Paila. 

28.  Cemetery. 

19.  Medio. 

31.  Murillp. 

30.  Guavito. 

NOVEMBER. 

NOVEMBER. 

5.  Boqueron. 

MAT. 

1.  Paila. 

6.  Rio  Fucha, 

1.  Foot  of  Cam  Perro. 

10.  Murillo. 

10.  Guadalupe,  Boqueron. 

14.  Rio  de  Las  Canas. 

Paila,  Libraida,  Cabana. 

16.  Boqueron. 

:.4.  Xear  Cam  Perro. 

11.  Cartago,  Victoria. 

18.  Montserrate. 

22.  Piedra  de  Moler,  Capote. 

22.  Cemetery. 

JUNE. 

23.  Balsa,  Cabas,  Portachuelo. 

23.  Rio  Arzobispo. 

4  Sear  Cam  Perro. 

24.  Roble,  Boquia.  BarcinaL 

25.  Fucha. 

14.  Roldanillo. 

25.  Paramo,  Volcancito,  Galle- 

26.  Pe/ia,  Upper  Fucha. 

15.  Libraida,  Paila. 

26.  Toche.  El  Moral.          [go. 

•28.  Lajas,  Chaqueral. 

27.  IBAGUE. 

DECEMBER. 

•29.  Libraida,  Una-gato,  PAILA. 

f.  Paramo  of  Andrea  Rosas. 

DECEMBER. 

3.  Boqueron. 

JULY. 

1.  Tolima. 

1.  Soacha,  Hacienda  de   Te- 

4.  Rase  of  Cara  Perro. 

6.  Piedras. 

quendama. 

8.  Murillo. 

7.  Opia,  Rio  Seco,  Neme. 

8-11.  Sato  de  Tequendama. 

9.  Paila. 

8.  Tocaima,  Juntas. 

15.  (  i  bate,  Boca  del  Monte,  Fu- 

15.  Lajas. 

9.  Anapoima,  Mesa. 

S-YGASUGA. 

16.  Paila. 

31.  Tena,  Zaragoza. 

APPENDIX. 


593 


14.  San  Antonio,  Curcio,  Te- 
quendama,  Zaragoza. 

15.  Tena,  MESA. 
17.  Volcan. 

19.  Tena,  Barro  Blanco,  Haci- 
enda de  Quito. 

20.  Bogota. 

26.  Hacienda  de  Tequendama. 

27.  FUSAGASUGA. 

29,  30.  Chocho. 

1S54— JANUABY. 
3.  Cibate,  BOGOTA. 
6.  Effipto. 
14.  Guadalupe,  La  Pefia. 


IT.  Cruz-verde,  UB.VQUE. 

25.  Guaduas.                      [rias. 

18.  Choachi,  Thermal  Spring, 

26.  Alto  del  Sarjento,  Pescade- 

Laffuna-grande. 

27.  Honda. 

20.  Cruz-verde,  BOGOTA. 

MAY. 

FEBBUABY. 

1.  LaVuelta. 

7.  Montserrate. 

3.  Nare. 

10.  Paramo  of  Choachi. 

4  San  Pedro. 

25.  Rio  Arzobigpa. 

5.  Puerto-nacionaL 

6.  Mompos. 

MABCH. 

7.  Calamar. 

7.  Chapinero. 

8.  Mahates,  Arjona. 

9.  Turbaco,  CARTAGENA. 

APEIL. 

10.  San  Ldzaro.. 

24.  Facatativa,  Chimbe. 

11.  Boca  Cliic;i,  Caribbean  Sea. 

IX.  CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE. 

The  figures  in  parentheses  refer  to  pages  in  this  work  where  the  events  are 
referred  to. 


1492.  New  World  discovered  by  Columbus, 
October  11. 

1497.  Continent  discovered  by  Cabot,  June  4. 

1502.  New  Granada  discovered  by  Columbus, 
December  14. 

1504  Queen  Isabel  died,  November  26. 

1506.  Death  of  Columbus,  May  20. 

1510.  First  settlement  by  Nicuesa  at  Madre  de 

Dios. 
Turbaco  plundered  by  Ojeda. 

1513.  The  Pacific  discovered  by  Balboa,  Sep- 
tember 25. 

1516.  Fernando  V.  died,  January  22. 

1519.  Panama  founded  by  Arias  Davila. 

1524.  Peru  invaded  from  Panama  by  Pizarro. 

1525.  Santamarta  founded  by  Bastidas,  July  29. 
1533.  Cartagena  founded  by  Heredia,  Jan.  15. 

1536.  Quesada  sets  out  from  Santamarta,  April 

6  (202). 
Popayan  and  Call  founded  by  Benalcazar. 

1537.  Quesada   enters   the   Plain   of  Bogota, 

March  (202). 

1538.  Bogota  founded  by  Quesada,  August  6. 
Zaquesazipe  murdered  (248). 

1539.  Tunja,  Velez,  and  Mompos  founded. 
1544.  Cartagena  taken  by  Baal,  July  27. 
1555.  Carlos  V.  abdicated,  Oct.  25  (died  1558). 
1558.  Montaflo  the  tyrant  executed. 

1564.  Andres  Diaz  Venero  de  Leiva  enters  Bo- 
gota (February). 

1572.  President  Leiva  founds  the  Cathedral, 
March  12  (194). 

1574  Venero  de  Leiva,  first  president  of  San- 
tafii,  promoted. 

1575.  Francisco  Bricefio,  second  president,  died, 
December  13. 

1579.  Quesada  died,  February  16  (203). 

1580.  Lope  Diez  Aux  de  Annendariz,  third 

president,  dies  in  prison. 
1586.  Cartagena  taken  by  Drake,  February. 

1596.  Cartagena  taken  by  Robert  Baal. 

1597.  Gonzalez,  fourth  president,  resigned. 

1598.  Felipe  II.  died,  September  3. 
1602.  Jesuits  established  in  Bogota. 

Francisco  de  Sande  ("  Dr.  Sangre"),  fifth 

president,  died.  [gena. 

1608  (about).  Inquisition  established  in  Carta- 

1620.  Failure  of  the  South  Sea  scheme. 

1621.  Felipe  III.  died,  March  31. 

1628.  Juan  de  Borja,  sixth  president,  died, 
February  12. 

1638.  Sancho  Jiron,  Marquis  of  Sofraga,  sev- 
enth president,  suspended. 

1645.  Martin  Saavedra  (Guzman),  eighth  pres- 
ident, resigned. 

1653.  Juan  Fernandez  C6rdoba  (Coalla),  Mar- 
quis de  Miranda  de  Auta,  ninth  pres- 
ident, resigned  (died  1664). 

PP 


1653.  Colegio  del  Rosario  founded  (263). 
1662.  Dionisio  Perez -Manrique,  Marquis  of 

Santiago,  tenth  president,  removed, 

February. 
1664  Diego  de  Ergiies  (Beaumont),  eleventh 

president,  died,  December  25. 
1665.  John  Morgan  takes  Portobello, 
Felipe  IV.  died,  September  17. 
1667.  Diego  del  Corro  Carrascal,  twelfth  pres- 
ident, promoted. 
1671.  Morgan  takes  Panama,  January  28. 

Diego  de  Villalba  (Toledo),  thirteenth 

president,  suspended,  June  12. 
1674  Melchor    Linan    (Cisneros),    fourteenth 

president,  promoted. 
1686.  Francisco   Castillo    (Concha),   fifteenth 

president,  died. 

1695.  Cartagena  taken  by  Ducasse. 
Cartagena  taken  by  Pointis. 

1700.  Carlos  II.  died,  November  1. 

1703.  Jil  de  Cabrera  (Davalos),  sixteenth 
president,  left. 

1712.  Diego  Cordova  Lasso  de  la  Vega,  seven- 
teenth president,  left. 

1715.  Francisco  Meneses  Bravo,  eighteenth 
president,  sent  home,  September  24. 

1719.  Francisco  del  Rincon,  nineteenth  presi- 
dent, superseded,  November  27. 

1724  Jorje  Villalonga,  first  viceroy,  recalled, 
May  17. 

1731.  Antonio  Manso  Maldonado,  twentieth 
president,  left. 

1737.  Rafael  Eslabar  twenty-first  president, 
died,  April. 

1739.  Antonio  Gonzalez  Manrique,  twenty-sec- 

ond president,  died,  September  3. 
Portobello  taken  *'with  six  ships"  by 
Vernon,  November  22. 

1740.  Francisco  Gonzalez  Manrique,  last  pres- 

ident, superseded,  April  24. 
Restriction  of  the  Jesuits  (508). 
Gregorio   Vasquez    (Ceballos),   painter, 

flourished  (192). 

1741.  Vernon  appeared  before  Cartagena,  Mar. 

13  (43). 

Unsuccessful  attack  on  San  Lazaro,  April 
20  (48). 

1746.  Felipe  V.  died,  July  9. 

1749.  Sebastian  Eslava,  second  viceroy,  re- 
signed, December  6. 

1753.  Jose-  Alfonso  Pizarro,  Marquis  of  Villar, 
third  viceroy,  resigns. 

1759.  Fernando  VI.  died,  August  10. 

1701.  Jose  Soils  Folch  de  Cardona,  fourth  vice- 

roy, turned  monk,  February  24. 
1767.  C6dula  expelling  the  Jesuits,  October  18 

(508). 
1770.  Census  of  the  viceroyalty  806,209. 


594 


APPENDIX. 


1773.  Pedro  Messia  Cerda,  Marquis  de  Vega 

de  Armijo,  fifth  viceroy,  returns. 
1776.  Manuel  Guirior,  sixth  viceroy,  promoted. 

1781.  The  Socorro  rebellion,  March  26. 
Capitulation  of  Cipaquira  (afterward  vi- 
olated), June  8. 

1782.  Manuel-Antonio  F16res,  seventh  viceroy, 

promoted,  March  1. 

Juan  de  Torrezal  Diaz  Pimienta,  eighth 
viceroy,  died,  June  11. 

1783.  Census  of  the  viceroyalty  1,046,641. 
1785.  Great  earthquake  at  Bogota. 
1788.  Carlos  III.  died,  December  13. 

-    1789.  Antonio   Caballero,  ninth  viceroy,  re- 
signed, January  8. 
Francisco  Jil   (L6mus),  tenth  viceroy, 

promoted,  July  31. 
1795.  Closure  of  Boca-grande  (42). 
.    1797.  Jos6  Espeleta,   eleventh   viceroy,  pro- 
moted, January  2. 

1801.  Humboldt  arrived  in  New  Granada. 

1802.  Observatory  of  Bogota  begun,  May  24 

(265). 

1803.  Census  of  the  viceroyalty  2,000,000. 
Pedro   Mendinueta   (Muzquiz),  twelfth 

viceroy,  promoted,  September  17. 
1808.  Jose  Celestino  Mutis  died,  September  11 

(216). 

Carlos  IV.  resigned,  March  19.  No  suc- 
cessor reigned  in  New  Granada. 

1810.  Pamploneses  imprisoned  their  corregi- 

dor,  July  4. 
Corregidor  of  Socorro  imprisoned  by  the 

people,  July  11. 

Governor  of  Cartagena  driven  off,  July  14. 
Antonio   Amar  (Borbon),  last  viceroy, 

overthrown,  July  20. 

1811.  General  Baraya  gains  the  battle  of  Pa- 

lace, Pp.,  March  28  (154). 

General  Narino,  president  of  Cundina- 
marca. 

Custodio  Garcia-Rovira,  president  of 
the  Provincias  Unidas. 

1812.  Congress  at  Leiva. 
Junta  general  at  Bogota. 

Bolivar  takes  Tenerife,  Sm.,  from  the 

Spaniards,  December  23. 
Narino  attacked  at  Bogota  by  Baraya, 

December  24  (565). 

1813.  Victory  of  San  Jose,  Pm.,  gained  by  Bol- 

ivar over  Correa,  February  28. 

1814.  Narino  defeated  Samano  (Spaniard)  at 

Calibio,  Pp.,  January  15. 

Antonio  Ricaurte  blew  up  himself  and 
the  enemy  at  San  Mateo,  Venezuela, 
March  25. 

Manuel  Bernardo  Alvarez,  president  of 
Cundinamarca. 

Camilo  Torres,  president  of  the  Congress 
of  the  United  Provinces. 

Bolivar  stormed  Bogotd  and  overthrew 
the  government,  of  Cundinamarca,  De- 
cember 12  (566).  [dissolves. 

1815.  Cartagena  shut  out  Bolivar.    His  army 
Pablo  Morillo   arrived  at  Porto  Santo, 

Venezuela,   with    15,000    men    from 

Spain,  April  13. 
Urdaneta  defeated  by  Calzada  (Spanish) 

at  Chitaga,  Pm.  1,  November  SO. 
Morillo  takes  Cartagena  by  famine  after 

116  days'  siege,  December  5. 
Morillo  shot  the  defenders  of  Cartagena, 

December.  [ry  15. 

1816.  Morillo  set  out  from  Cartagena,  Janvta- 
Morillo  entered  Bogota,  May  30. 
Morillo  shot  the  maiden  Policarpa  Sala- 

varrieta  and  others,  June  (165). 
Defeat  of  Cuchilla  del  Tambo,  Pp.  1 ; 
Herran,  Mosquera,  and  Lopez,  prison- 
ers, June  29  (266). 


1S16. 
1819. 


1S20. 


1821. 


1822. 


1824. 


1S25. 
1826. 


1827. 
1828. 


1S29. 


1830. 


1831. 


Caldas  shot  by  Morillo,  October  29  (266). 

Congress  of  Angostura.  Union  of  New 
Granada  and  Venezuela,  February  15. 

Bolivar  made  president. 

Bolivar  defeated,  and  took  Barreiro  at 
Boyaca,  Tj.  1,  August  7. 

Law  of  Congress  of  Angostura  creating 
the  nation  of  Colombia,  December  17. 

Simon  Bolivar  president;  '/.en,  Santan- 
der,  and  Roscio  vice-presidents. 

Calzada  took  Popayan,  January  24. 

Victory  of  Pitayo,  Pp.,  June  6. 

Truce  with  Morillo.  End  of  the  war  of 
extermination,  November  27. 

Congress  of  Cucuta  at  Rosario,  Pm.  8, 
May  6  (205). 

Second  battle  and  great  victory  of  Cara- 
bobo,  Venezuela,  June  24. 

First  Constitution  of  Colombia,  August 
30  (205). 

Cartagena  taken  from  the  Spaniards  by 
Montilla,  October  11. 

Bolivar  gained  the  victory  of  Bombona, 
Ps.  1,  April  7. 

Victory  of  Pichincha,  Ecuador,  May  24. 

Ecuador  became  a  part  of  Colombia, 
May  29. 

Maracaibo  capitulated  to  the  Colombian 
arms,  August  3. 

Last  Spanish  battle  in  Colombia  at  Bar- 
bacoas,  Ps.  2,  June  1. 

Last  Spanish  battle  in  South  America 
gained  by  Sucre  at  Ayacucho,  Peru, 
December  9. 

Census  of  New  Granada  1,258,259. 

Paez  revolted  from  Colombia,  April  GO 
(206). 

Bolivar  re-elected  president  by  the  peo- 
ple, Santander  vice-president  (906$. 

Bolivar's  fourth  resignation  (not  accept- 
ed), February  6  (206). 

Great  earthquake  at  Bogota,  Nov.  16. 

Convention  of  Ocana,  Oc.  1,  Mar.  2  (207). 

Quorum  destroyed  by  secession  of  twen- 
ty, June  10  (207). 

Bolivar  proclaimed  dictator  by  Herran, 
June  13  (207). 

War  declared  against  Peru,  July  3. 

Organic  decree  abrogating  the  Constitu- 
tion of  1821,  August  27  (207). 

Attempt  to  assassinate  Bolivar,  Septem- 
ber 25  (207). 

Battle  of  Ladera,  Pp.  1.  Obando  and  U- 
pez  against  the  dictator,  November  12. 

Unsuccessful  attack  of  the  Peruvians  on 
Guayaquil,  Ecuador,  November  22. 

Victory  over  the  Peruvians  at  Portete  de 
Tarqui,  Ecuador,  February  27. 

C6rdova  defeated  by  Dictatorial  troops 
at  Santuario  and  murdered,  An.  4,  Oc- 
tober 17  (135,  209). 

Secession  of  Venezuela  under  Paez,  No- 
vember 24. 

Constituent  Congress  of  Bogota,  Jan.  20. 

Fifth  and  last  resignation  of  Bolivar  (ac- 
cepted), May  4. 

Second  Constitution  of  Colombia  (209). 

Congress  elected  Joaquin  Mosquera 
president  of  Colombia,  May  4  (20^, 
250). 

Assassination  of  Marshal  Antonio-Jose 
de  Sucre  at  Berruecos,  Ps.  1,  June  4 
(252). 

Defeat  of  government  at  Santuario,  B.  6, 
August  27  (250). 

Rafael  Urdaneta  dictator,  September  2. 

Bolivar  died  at  Santamarta,  December 
17  (210). 

Treaty  of  Juntas,  B.  12.  Domingo  Cai- 
cedo  vice-president,  April  28  (250, 345). 


APPENDIX. 


595 


1831.  Complete  dismemberment  of  Colombia 

(209). 

Convention  of  Bogota,  October  20. 
Caicedo  resigns.     Jose  Maria   Obando 

elected  vice-president  by  Convention, 

November  22  (250). 

1832.  First    Constitution    of   New    Granada, 

March  1  (250). 

Francisco  de  Paula  Santander  elected 
president  by  the  Convention,  March  9 
(250). 

1833.  Santander,  again  elected  by  the  people, 

took  his  seat,  April  1. 
Sarda  conspiracy,  15-20  executed  (250). 
1835.  Census  of  New  Granada  1,687,109. 
1337.  Jose  Ignacio  Marquez  president,  April  1 ; 

(elected  by  the  people)  (251). 

1839.  Four  conventsinPasto  suppressed,  JuneS. 
Obando  defeated  by  government  at  Bue- 

saco,  Ps.  1,  August  31. 

1840.  Government  gains  the  battle  of  Culebre- 

ra,  B.  6,  October  28  (135,  253). 
.     1841.  Government  gains  the  battle  of  Tescua, 

Pm.  1,  April  1  (253). 

Pedro  Alcantara  Herran  president,  April 
1 ;  (elected  by  the  people)  (507). 

1842.  Cartagena   taken,   and    the   Revolution 

ended,  February  19  (44). 
Recall  of  the  Jesuits  (508). 

1843.  Census  of  New  Granada  1,932,279. 
Second  Constitution  of  New  Granada, 

April  80  (508). 
1845.  Tomas  Cipriano  de  Mosquera  president, 

April  1 ;  (elected  by  the  people)  (509). 
1849.  Jose  Hilario  Lopez  elected  by  Congress, 

March  7  (521). 

1S50.  Re-expulsion  of  the  Jesuits,  May  18  (528). 
Misgovernment  in  the  Cauca  (527). 


1851.  Assassination  of  Pinto  and  Morales,  June 

19  (529). 

Seizure  of  Ospina  at  Bogota,  July  30  (192). 
Battle  of  Rionegro,  An.  6.    Revolution 

ended,*  September  7. 
Census  of  New  Granada  2,243,730. 

1852.  Slavery  abolished,  January  1  (527). 

1853.  Jose  Maria  Obando  president,  April  1 ; 

(elected  by  the  people)  (257). 
Third   Constitution   of  New  Granada, 
May  21  (540). 

1854.  Revolution  broke  out  in  Popayan,  Pp.  1, 

April  8  (563). 

Riot  at  Bogota,  April  14  (555). 

General  Joso  Maria  Melo  seized  the  ex- 
ecutive officers,  April  17  (558). 

Tomas  Herrera,  designado,  lawfully  in 
power,  April  21  (563).  [562). 

Melo's  troops  enter  Honda,  April  25  (104, 

Franco  defeated  and  slain  at  Cipaquira, 
B.  3,  May  19  (563). 

Buitrago  defeated  at  Tiquiza,  B.  3,  May 
21  (563). 

Battle  in  Cali,  Bv.  1,  June  16  (529). 

Jose  de  Obaldia,  vice-president,  in  su- 
preme power. 

Surprise  of  Guaduas  by  Arboleda,  June 
23  (563). 

Battle  of  Palmira,  Cc.  4,  Aug.  31. 

Battle  of  Boza,  B.  1,  November  22  (564). 

Action  of  Tres  Esquinas  at  Bogota,  No- 
vember 23  (565). 

Bogota  taken  and  the  revolution  ended, 
December  4  (556). 

1855.  Manuel  Maria  Mallarino  vice-president, 

April  1  (522).     (Obando  deposed.) 
Assassination  of  Antonio  Mateus,  Dec.  4. 

1856.  Election  for  president,  August  31  (567). 


*  Neither  Heiran  nor  Mosquera  were  in  the  country  during  this  revolution,  nor  was  Lfipez  during  the  one  that  pre- 
ceded. It  does  not  appear  that  either  of  thes«  three  presidents  ever  drew  sword  against  the  constitutional  authority 
of  his  conutry.  (See  p.  251.)  The  misrepresentations  on  which  the  remarks  were  based  were  the  work  of  political 
hate.  This  correction,  thus  late  and  out  of  place,  is  one  of  sheer  justice. 

X.  WEIGHTS  AND  MEASUEES. 

Four  kinds  of  weights  and  measures  have  been  in  legal  use  in  New  Granada 
in  this  century. 

I.  The  Castilian,  established  June  26,  1801 ;  abolished  October  12, 1821. 

IE.  The  Colombian,  established  in  1821 ;  abolished  May  26,  1836. 

HI.  The  Granadan,  established  in  1836 ;  abolished  June  8,  1853. 

IV.  The  French,  established  in  1853,  now  the  legal  system  in  New  Granada. 

The  following  account,  calculated  from  official  documents  furnished  at  the 
last  hour,  must  be  regarded  as  approximate  only,  for  the  confusion  is  utter  and 
inextricable.  The  figures  preceding  denominations  show  how  many  are  required 
to  make  one  of  the  next  higher.  The  liquid  gallon  used  below  contains  231 
cubic  inches;  the  bushel,  2150.42. 


I.  MEASURES  OF  LENGTH. 

Legal. 

MiriAmetro  6.214  miles. 
10  Quil6metro  0.621  miles. 
10  Hectometre  19.872  rods. 
10  Decametro  10.936  yards. 
10  Metro  3.28099  feet. 
10  Decimetro  3.937  inches. 
10  Centimetre  0.398  inches. 
10  Milimetro  0.039  inches. 

Castilian  and  Colombian. 
Vara  2.742  feet. 
3  Pie"  0.915  feet 
12  Pulgada  0.914  inches. 
12  Linea  0.076  inches. 


Granadan. 
Vara  2.625  feet. 
4  Cuarta  7.874  inches. 
2  Octava  3.987  inches. 
10  Pulgada  0.7S7  inches. 
10  Linea  0.079  inches. 

II.  ITINEBAET. 

Legal. 

Miriametro  6.214  miles. 
10  Quil6metro  0.621  miles. 
10  Hectometre  19.872  rods. 
10  Decametro  10.396  yards. 
10  Metro  3.281  feet. 

Castilian. 
Legua  8.463  miles. 


, 


596 


APPENDIX. 


G666I  Vara  2.T42  feet. 
Pi6  0.914  feet. 

Colombian, 
Legua  3.116. 
3  Milla  1.039  miles. 
2000  Vara  2.T42  feet 
S  Pie  0.914  feet 

Granadan. 
Legua  3.107  miles. 
62 i  Cuadra  15.907  rods. 
100   Vara  2.625  feet 

III.    SUPEKFICIAL. 

Legal. 

Metro  cuadrada  10.764  square  feet. 
100  Decimetre  cuadrada  15.500  square  inches. 
100  Centimetre  cuadrada  0. 155  square  inches. 
100  Milimetro  cuadrada  0.015  square  inches. 

Castilian  and  Colombian. 
Vara  7.521  square  feet. 
9  Pi6  0.836  square  feet 
144  Pulgada  0.836  square  inches. 
114  Linen.  0.006  square  inches. 

Granadan. 

Vara  6.889  square  feet 
16  Cuarta  62.002  square  inches, 
4  Octava  15.501  square  inches. 
25  Pulgada  0.620  square  inches. 
100  Line*  0.006  square  inches. 

IV.  AGBABIAN. 

Legal. 

Miriara  247.110  acres. 
10  Quiloara  27.711  acres. 
10  Hectoara  2.471  acres. 
10  Decara  89.538  rods. 
10  Ara  107.642406  feet. 
10  Deciara  10.764  feet. 
10  Centiara  1.076  feet 
10  Miliara  0.108  feet 

CantiKan. 

Fanegada  1.591  acres. 
12  Crlrmin  21.217  rods. 
4  Cuartillo  5.304  rods. 
4  Estadal  188.034  feet. 
25  Vara  7.521  feet. 

Aranzada  1.105  acres. 
Cabellaria  61.396  rods. 
4  Peonia  15.349  rods. 

Colombian. 
Fanegada  1.727  acres. 
4    Estancia  69.066  rods. 
4    Celemin  17.267  rods. 
4   Cuartillo  4.317  rods. 
0}  Estadal  188.034  feet. 
25    Vara  7.521  feet. 

Cfranadan 

Fanegada  1.582  acres. 
16  Aranzada  15.815  rods. 
25  Estadal  0.633  rods, 
25  Vara  6.889  feet 

V.  CUBIC. 

Legal. 

Miriaesterio  39241  yards. 
10  Quiloesterio  8924.1  yards. 
10  Hectoesterio  392.41  yards, 
10  Decaesterio  39.241  yards. 
10  Esterio  35.817  feet 
10  Deciesterio  3.532  feet. 
10  Centiesterio  610.278  inches. 
10  Miliesterio  61.028  inches. 

Castilian  and  Colombian. 
Vara  20.627  feet 
27  Pie  0.764  feet. 
1728  Pulgada  0.764  inches. 
1728  Linea  0.005  inches. 

Granadan. 
Vara  18.082  feet 


64  Cuarta  488.216  inches. 
8  Octava  61.027  inches. 
125  Pulgada  .488  inches. 
1000  Linea  0.0005  inches. 

VI.  DBY  MEABUBF. 

Legal. 

Mirialitro  288.738  bushels. 
10  Quilolitro  28.374  bushels. 
10  Hectolitre  2.837  bushels. 
10  Decalitre  0.284  bushels. 
10  Litre  0.908  quarts. 
10  Decilitre  0.091  quarts. 
10  Centilitre  0.009  quarts. 
10  Mililitro  0.0009  quarts. 

Castilian  and  Colombian. 
Cahiz  18.658  bushels. 
12  Fanega  1.555  bushels. 
12  Celemin  0.518  pecks. 
2  Medio  celemin  2.073  quarts. 
4  Cuartillo  1  quart=91.1977  pulgadas  cubicas. 

Granadan. 

Cahiz  73.535  bushels. 
12  Fanega  6.128  bushels. 
12  Almud  0.511  bushels. 

2  Medio  almud  1  peck=1125  pulgadas  cubicas. 

VII.  LIQUID  MEASURE. 

Legal. 

Mirialitro  2641.78  gallons. 
10  Quilolitro  264.178  gallons. 
10  Hectolitre  26.418  gallons'. 
10  Decalitre  2.642  gallons. 
10  Litre  1.05672  quarts. 
10  Decilitre  0.8454  gills. 
10  Centilitre  0.0845  gills. 
10  Mililitro  0.008  gilla. 

Castilian  and  Colombian. 
Moyo  68.217  gallons. 
16  Cantara  4.263  gallons. 
8  Azumbre  1.066  quarts. 
4  Cuartillo  2.182  gills=40.283S  pulgadas  cubi- 
cas. 

Cfranadan. 
Moyo  16.908  gallons. 
8  Cantara  2.113  gallons. 
8  Azumbre  1.057  quarts=125  pulgadas  cubica- . 

VIII.  WEIGHTS. 

Legal. 

Miriagramo  22.047  Ibs.  avoirdupois. 
10  Quilogramo  2.205  Ibs. 
10  Hectogramo  220  Ibs. 
10  Decagramo  154.332  grains. 
10  Gramo  15.48316  grains. 
10  Decigramo  1.543  grains. 
10  Centigramo  0.154  grains. 
10  Miligramo  0.0015  grains. 

Castilian  and  Colombian. 
Quintal  101.418  Ibs.  avoirdupois. 
4  Arroba  25.354  Ibs. 
25  Libra  1.014  Ibs. 
16  Onza  1.014  ounces, 
16  Adarme  1.014  drachms. 

3  Tomin  9.244  grains. 
12  Grano  0.77033  grains. 

Granadan. 
Quintal  110.237  Ibs.  avoirdupois. 

4  Arroba  27. 559  Ibs. 
25  Libra  1.102  Ibs. 

16  Onza  1.102  ounces. 

16  Adarme  1.102  drachms. 

40  Grano  0.7633  grains.     . 

IX.  SPECIAL  CASTILIAN  WEIGHTS. 

Silver. 
Marco  0.5070895  Ibs.  avoirdupois. 

5  Onza  443.704  grains. 
8  Ochava  55.463  grains. 

6  Tomin  9.244  grains. 


APPENDIX. 


597 


12  Grano  0.770  grains. 

Gold. 

Marco  0.507  Ibs.  avoirdupois. 
50  Castellano  70.993  grains. 
8  Tomin  8.874  grains. 
12  Grano  0.74  grains. 


Libra  0.9245  ft  troy. 
12  Onza  0.9245  §. 

8  Dracma  0.9245  3. 

3  Escrupulo  0.9245  3. 
24  Grano  0.77033  grains. 


XI.  ANALYTICAL  INDEX. 

In  the  following  index  an  attempt  is  made  to  collect  tlie  topics  and  things  in- 
troduced into  the  narrative,  and  arrange  them  in  the  order  they  might  occupy 
in  a  philosophical  treatise  on  New  Granada.  The  references  are  to  pages,  and 
those  preceded  byf.  refer  to  the  page  where  the  object  is  figured.  The  index  is 
arranged  into  thirty-two  sections,  as  follows : 


1.  Physical  Geography. 

2.  Races  and  Conditions  of  Men. 

3.  Dress. 

4.  Habitations. 

5.  Furniture. 

6.  Kitchen  and  Utensils. 

7.  Water  and  Drinks. 

8.  Food. 

9.  Domestic  Employments. 

10.  Agriculture. 

11.  Pastoral  Occupations. 

12.  Manufactures. 

13.  Transportation  by  Water. 

14.  Traveling  and  Transportation  by 

Land. 

15.  Commerce  and  Trade. 

16.  Government. 

17.  Political  Parties. 


18.  Treasury  Department. 

19.  Foreign  Relations. 

20.  War  and  Marine  Departments. 

21.  Government  Department — Law. 

22.  Government  Department — Hospi- 

tals, Diseases,  and  Physicians. 

23.  Government  Department — Schools 

and  Literature. 

24.  Fine  Arts. 

25.  Amusements,  Habits,   and   Social 

Life. 

26.  Morals. 

27.  Religion — Dogmas. 

28.  Religion — Material  Objects. 

29.  Religion — Persons. 

30.  Religion — Ceremonies. 

31.  Animals. 

32.  Plants. 


SECTION  1.— PHYSICAL  GEOGRAPHY. 


Position  of  N-ew  Granada,  19. 

MOUNTAINS  :  Cordillera  de  Santamarta,  25, 
27:  Bogota,  239;  Quindio,  355;  Caldas,  525, 
536 ;  Honda  rarge,  340 ;  Tibacui,  817 ;  abrupt, 
!>0,  126;  without  rock,  355.  Throwing  stones 
from  a  precipice,  219,  276;  measuring  altitudes 
by  the  thermometer,  265. 

Scenery  :  from  Alto  del  Sargento,  104  ; 
from  Carepcrro,  435 ;  from  near  Cartago,  374 ; 
Zonza,  505. 

Geological  Section,  587 ;  observations  on  the 
map,  57  i. 

CLIMATES,  73 ;  influence  of  altitude,  22,  237 ; 
of  latitude,  523 ;  chart  of  altitudes,  589 ;  cli- 
mate map,  590 ;  change  of  vegetation,  126 ; 
nights  always  cold,  238 ;  cold  night,  368. 

Tierra  fria,  73 ;  its  plants,  215 ;  rarity  of 
the  air,  127,  271 ;  agreeable  to  th«  natives,  215 ; 
chapping  the  face,  128;  blue  sky,  271;  hail, 
210;  frost,  271 ;  want  of  trees  at  Bogota,  221. 

Paramo:  Of  Choachi,  237 ;  Cruz-verde,  255 ; 
"angry,"  238;  emparamar,  370. 

Perpetual  Snow :  Santamarta  range,  26 ; 
Tolima,  215. 

HTDEOGEAPHIC  notions,  235 ;  banda,  19. 

Mountain  Lakes:  Plain  of  Bogota,  126;  La- 
guna-grande,  248. 


River  Magdalena:  Floating  on  the  sea,  28; 
bar  at  the  mouth,  27 ;  lower  river,  40 ;  Honda 
rapids,  95;  upper  river,  320;  change  of  sand- 
bars, 341. 

Miner  Cauca,  19;  mouth,  60;  rapids,  19; 
Upper  Cauca,  400,  411 ;  swimming  it,  411. 

River  Bogota:  Upper  river,  274.;  Falls  of 
Tequendama,  274,  /.  281 ;  lower  river,  344. 

MINERALS:  Gold,  289,  881,  526;  silver,  100; 
mines  of  precious  metals  a  misfortune,  500; 
iron,  239 ;  copper,  239, 525 ;  salt,  239 ;  sulphur, 
357;  coal,  239,  523;  lignite,  523;  bitumen,  342; 
lime,  524 ;  emeralds,  239. 

SPRINGS  :  Libraida,  415 ;  Mesa,  846.  Warm: 
Choachi,  242 ;  Tabio,  242 ;  Agua-caliente,  858 ; 
Toche,  359.  Sulphur  spring,  343 ;  salt,  438 ; 
Rio  Vinagre,  19. 

VOLCANO:  Extinct,  836 ;  pumice-stone,  336 ; 
mud  volcano,  47;  "Volcanes,"  349,  351. 

Animals  in  §  31.     Plants,  j  32. 

Natural  bridge,  309;  Hoyo  del  Aire,  263; 
natural  picture,  524. 

METEOROLOGY  :  Seasons,  270  ;  horizon  al- 
ways cloudy,  467,  21 ;  perpetual  rain,  290 ;  fogs 
and  mist,  278;  lunar  influences,  110,  474;  me- 
teorological observations — Bogota,  270 ;  Cauca. 


598 


APPENDIX. 


SECTION  2. — RACES  AND  CONDITIONS  OP  MKK. 


INDIANS  :  Goajiras,  26 ;  Uplanders,  246,  /. 
240,  292;  not  exposed  to  brutality,  247;  sub- 
dued by  conversion,  26 ;  extermination  on  the 
Magdalena,  60 ;  in  the  Cauca,  24, 436 ;  Muiscas, 
202 ;  Zaquesazipa's  death,  248 ;  reserves,  242 ; 
"Aztec"  dwarfs,  396. 

EUROPEAN  RACE:  Chapetones  and  criollos, 
168;  conquerors,  23;  Orejones,  132, /.  132;  ca- 
chacos,  146;  collecting  a  debt  of  one,  560; 
guarichas,  174;  ladies  in  a  procession,  551 ; 


beauty  in  children,  587 ;  morals,  542 ;  passions 
not  violent,  23. 

NEOROES  :  Prevalence  of  the  race,  518  ;  slav- 
ery and  its  extinction,  508,  527 ;  negress  a  term 
of  endearment,  481 ;  mute  children,  396. 

MIXED  RACES,  69;  school  in  Cali,  51s?;  poor  in 
Bogota,  178;  poor  near  Bogota,  219;  low  stature. 
227;  small  feet,  236;  the  aged,  532;  bogas  (in 
§  13) ;  cargueros,  98 ;  silleros,  363,  /.  364 ;  le- 
nera,  221 ;  with  babe,  225 ;  gold  washers,  626. 


SECTION  3.— DRESS. 


MALE  DKESS:  Tapa,  69,  /.  70;  camisa,  136; 
pantalones,  136 ;  ruana,  82 ;  bayeton,  32 ;  encau- 
chado,  32;  hat  of  jipijapa,  63;  raspon,  69, /. 
70,  136;  funda,  133;  barbuquejo,  133, /.  132; 
zamarros,  133,  /.  182,  426;  (not  allowed  in 
church),  412;  alpargates,  236, /.  236;  albarcas, 
35, /.  292;  carriel,  101,  586. 

FEMALE  DRESS:  Camison,  59, /.  59 ;  camisa, 
145,  /.  136;  arandela,  145,  /.  441;  enaguas, 
145 ;  chircate,  136,  /.  136 ;  maure,  187 ;  pano- 
lon,  145;  mantellina,  136,  /.  136;  gorra,  112. 
Bonnets  rare,  112;  felt  hat,  157;  combs  not 
common,  526.  Blue  a  common  color,  68. 


PRIEST'S  DRESS  :  Hat,  192,  /.  193 ;  sotana, 
193;  chaqueta,  193;  manteo,  193;  sotacuello. 
65;  habitos,  193, /.  193;  (vestments  for  offici- 
ating, §  29) ;  (tonsure,  66). 

Penitent' 8  dress,  546;  capirote,  545;  cucuru- 
cho,  546. 

Church  dress  of  females,  184 ;  saya,  184 : 
mantellina,  184. 

Soldiers'  uniforms,  228. 

Bride's  dress,  451;  riding  dress,  380, /.  381; 
traveling  dress,  880, /.  240;  bathing  dress,  399 ; 
at  Honda,  99. 

Foreign  fashions,  245. 


SECTION  4. — HABITATIONS. 


HOUSES:  Casa  claustrada,  62,  /.  139;  alta, 
62 ;  baja,  63.  Arrangement  of  house  in  Honda, 
'.7;  Bogota,  138, /.  139 ;  Fusagasuga,  300 ;  Cau- 
ca, 463,  /.  464  Walls  of  adobe,  170 ;  tapias,  375 ; 
guadua,  464.  Roofs  of  tile,  62;  thatch,  36; 
guadua,  524.  Floor  of  earth,  324,  463 ;  brick, 
463;  cement,  840;  bitumen,  342. 

JRancho,  246 ;  of  bihai,  874 ;  of  Fourcroya, 
496;  tent,  356;  tambo,  365;  small  hut,  213,  225. 


Parts  of  Jtouse :  Zaguan,  62 ;  porton,  62,  /. 
156;  inner  door,  138;  corredor,  62;  pretil,  62; 
patio,  62;  sala,  48.  Windows:  Reja,  30;  sash 
and  glass,  140  ;  glass  scarce,  140.  Doors  : 
Coarse,  170;  with  curtain  only,  465;  maznpara, 
174. 

Towns :  laid  out  by  law,  85;  large  towns,  513. 
List  of  towns  and  population,  675.  Plaza,  18, 
plazuela,  154. 


SECTION  5.— FUBNITUBE. 


Carpets,  189 ;  matting,  178. 

SEATS:  Poyo,  49,  402;  sofa,  139;  lounge, 
•125;  easy-chair,  425;  arm-chair,  425;  chair, 
425;  stool,  425;  pellon,  188. 

TABLES  :  Immovable  and  small,  402 ;  coarse, 
404;  low,  174 

Books  rare,  170, 402 ;  clocks  and  watches,  22; 
saints'  images,  139 ;  pictures,  139. 

Bell-pull,  203. 

No  fires  for  warmth,  270. 

BEDSTEADS  :  immovable,  402 ;  hide-bottom- 


ed, 49;  cot,  147;  swing  for  cradle,  402;  mat- 
ting, 40;  hide  on  the  floor,  316;  a  good  bed, 
883.  Pillow,  49 ;  filled  with  cotton,  148.  Ham- 
mock, 48  ;  convenience,  83  ;  in  boat,  83  ;  in 
houses,  490,  536;  in  corredor,  125,  465,  501 ;  in 
the  woods,  492,  496 ;  with  musquito-net,  55. 

SLEEPING:  Warm  in  hammock,  368;  cold, 
368;  at  Bolivia,  587;  denuded  (gentleman), 
384;  (ladies  and  children),  422;  wrapped  up, 
422 ;  not  two  together,  538 ;  in  day-clothes,  467  ; 
on  horseback,  291. 


SECTION  6. — KITCHEN  AND  UTENSILS. 


KITCHENS:  Apart  from  the  house,  458;  a 
rancho,  395 ;  not  neat,  142 ;  floors  never  wash- 
ed, 330 ;  brooms,  474  Grinding-stone,  89 ;  tin- 
ajera,  115. 

FIRE-PLACE:  Tulpas,  56;  forge,  142;  fur- 
nace, 466 ;  kettles  in  arches,  466 ;  no  chimney, 
142 ;  too  short,  458,  466 ;  useless,  262 ;  smoke- 
liole,  142.  Oven,  149, 466.  Fuel  at  Bogota,  221 ; 
striking  fire,  468  ;  tinder,  468. 


COOKINO  VESSELS  :  Tinajon,  143 ;  funda, 
350;  paila,  466;  olla,  120,  143  ;  olleta,  89,  143. 

DISHES:  Terrapin  shell, 56 ;  totuma,  74;  car- 
ried in  the  hat,  494 ;  calabazo,  74 ;  trough,  89 ; 
tinaja,  75;  gacha,  144;  mucura,  115;  tarro, 
109,  /.  386 ;  silver  goblets,  472 ;  in  the  woods, 
498;  plate  for  saucer,  200.  Spoons  of  wood, 
17;  of  totuma,  120;  silver,  141,  471,  498;  no 
teaspoons,  471. 


SECTION  7. — WATER  AND  DEINKB. 


Fountain:  Guaduas,  115;  Ibagu6,  380;  Bo- 
gotd,  154;  its  aqueduct,  212  ;  (for  aqueducts, 
see  §  10) ;  no  wells,  415 ;  springs,  346,  415. 

Water-carriers:  Guaduas,  115;  Bogota,  145: 
Cartago,  386,  /.  386 ;  Sabanilla,  33 ;  at  a  hacien- 
i1  a,  469.  Water  left  to  settle,  75, 391 ;  never  cool, 
T  ' ;  Magdalena  and  Nare  Rivers,  75.  Drinking 
with  dulce,  494 ;  (bathing  and  swimming  in  §  25). 


Chocolate,  471 ;  its  preparation,  89,  466 ;  cof- 
fee, 34,  475;  panola  water,  360.  Spirits: 
Aguardiente,  448 ;  (distilling  in  5  12 ;  excise, 
5  18 ;  intemperance,  5  26) ;  anisado,  56 ;  milk 
punch,  415 ;  mistela,  440.  Fermented  drinks : 
Chicha,  144;  prepared  by  chewing,  144;  gua- 
rapo,  107;  with  sirup,  459  ;  with  spirit,  843; 
guarruz,  353 ;  limonada,  36 ;  naranjada,  121. 


APPENDIX. 


599 


SECTION  8. — FOOD. 


MEALS,  hours  for :  Honda,  98 ;  Bogota,  149 ; 
delay  in  preparing,  123,  511 ;  breakfast  at  4 
P.M.,  821;  at  6A.M.,  501;  none,511;  dinners: 
at  night,  325,  352,  35T,  511 ;  nothing  for  dinner, 
488:  long  fasts,  325,  354,  366,  401. 

Service  of  tables,  471 ;  on  boat,  58 ;  short  al- 
lowance on  champan,  86.  Women  eating  apart, 
397 ;  on  the  ground,  397.  (Price  of  board  and 
meals  in  §  14.) 

Bread,  141  :  not  made  in  families,  141 ; 
maize  grinding,  89,  143;  arepas,  372;  bollo, 
108;  cazabe,  62.  Cake  from  roots:  almoja- 
vana,  473;  suspiro,  472;  sagu,  146;  pie,  150; 
custard,  318. 

Milk,  473 ;  (milking  and  dairy  in  §  9) ;  cheese 
in  chocolate,  473,  634 ;  with  dulce,  473 ;  butter 
on  the  Magdalena,  56 ;  in  Bogotd,  141 :  lard, 
56 ;  eggs,  1411 ;  fried  arracacha,  498 ;  fried  plan- 
tains, 471 ;  fried  bananas,  348 ;  palmiche,  149. 


Sweetmeats  (dulce)  at  close  of  meals,  473 ;  in 
the  evening,  475 ;  before  drinking,  494  Alfan- 
doque,  124 ;  panela,  122 ;  sugar,  122 ;  miel, 
122;  miel  de  purga,  122;  molassess  thrown 
away,  511 ;  almibar,  122 ;  melado,  122 ;  honey, 
122. 

BEEP:  Slaughtering,  486;  tasajo,  56;  "fried 
oakum,"  471 ;  guisado,  473 ;  carne  de  menudo, 
177 ;  mondongo,  177.  Pork,  143 ;  chicken,  141 ; 
turkey,  146,  295 ;  goat,  56  ;  bear,  367 ;  veni- 
son, 496 ;  monkey,  485.  Fish :  Honda,  98 ;  Bo- 
gota, 172;  La  Paila,  448;  prolific  tendency  of 
fish  diet,  57,  71. 

Dishes:  Tamal,  143 ;  sausage,  120 ;  ajiaco, 
120 ;  puchero,  149  ;  olla  podrida,  149 ;  sancocho, 
471 ;  masamorra,  371 ;  soup,  141 ;  omelet,  140 ; 
of  turtle  eggs,  486 ;  blood,  142.  Capsicum,  295 ; 
cummin -seed,  120;  color,  141;  garlic,  295; 
lemon-juice,  295. 


SECTION  9. — DOMESTIC  EMPLOYMENTS. 


Housework :  Washing,  503 ;  (cooking  in  §  8 ; 
chocolate  making,  §  7) ;  mHking,  469 ;  making 
cheese,  470;  soap,  469;  grinding  maize,  89, 
143. 

Spinning,  289;  weaving,  519;    of  ruanas, 


533 ;   of  manta,  519 ;   (manufactures  in  §  12) ; 
getting  out  fique,  246 ;  making  cord,  246 ;  al- 
pargates,  236 ;  guambias,  246 ;  cigars,  99, 107, 
317  ;  braiding  hats,  105. 
Securing  eggs,  471. 


SECTION  10. — AGRICULTURE. 


FARMS  and  estates  large,  418;  Mr.  Byrne's, 
512 ;  small,  422 ;  distant,  422. 

IRRIGATION  :  Aqueducts  and  acequias,  500 ; 
unbridged,  500;  skill  of  acequeros,  501,  523; 
Guaduas,  115;  Bogota,  212;  Ibague,  380;  San 
Pedro,  501 ;  Cerrito,  509 ;  Call,  523. 

FENCES  :  rare,  131 ;  of  wood,  181 ;  tree-fern, 
129;  stone,  273;  tapias,  131;  adobe,  131,  226; 
tiled,  131 ;  guaduas,  109  ;  cornstalks,  539. 
Hedge,  103 ;  ditch,  131 ;  gates,  92,  /.  506. 

TOOLS  :  Axe,  487 ;  machete,  17,  /.  70 ;  pala, 
487;  plow,  133,  273;  yoke,  289;  cart,  487. 


Culture  of  maize,  4S7 ;  plantain,  487 ;  rice, 
500;  cane,  118,  487,  535;  (grinding,  etc.,  in  § 
12;  products  of  cane  in  §8) ;  wheat,  133,  400; 
guaduas,,  535.  Clearing  land,  487;  plowing, 
273;  carrying  cane,  474, 315;  drawing  guaduas, 
474;  making  ditch,  131 ;  getting  out  cacao,  88; 
threshing,  133. 

Horticulture :  Locks  necessary,  303 ;  garden 
at  Fusagasuga,  303 ;  Bolivia,  538 ;  school-yard, 
376;  little  garden,  399 ;  abandoned,  90.  Scarc- 
ity of  fruit,  403,  467. 

(Hunting  and  fishing  in  $  25.) 


Montura :  Saddle,  424;  stirrups,  183, /.  132; 
girth,  424 ;  cojinetes,  424 ;  sudadero,  425 ; 
breeching,  133,  /.  132  ;  bridle,  424 ;  halter, 
133, /.  132;  spurs,  371:  lazo,  425,  jf  426. 

Tinware'    T'hrnwincr   flip    lit-z.A     *19fi  •    nntpViino1 


SECTION  11.— PASTORAL  OCCUPATIONS. 


uie  raising,  4Si;  ourro,  4oi ;  tarjaao,  431. 
Cows:   Herding,  427;  catching,  427;  dyin 


with  rage,  428 ;  leading,  428 ;  triple  yoke,  289 ; 
setting  loose,  428,  432;  driving  a  drove,  433; 
cayenne  in  the  eyes,  433 ;  forked  post,  429, 485 ; 
marking,  429;  counter  branding,  438.  Ex- 
tracting worms,  429 ;  (milking  and  dairy  in  §  9) ; 
fattening,  398 ;  salt  needed,  398 ;  slaughtering, 
486;  drying  meat,  486;  in  the  blood,  534. 
Uses  for  hide,  385;  fed  to  dogs,  496;  stolen 
by  dogs,  425,  490.  Cattle  raising  in  Casanare, 
176 ;  on  the  Sabana,  131. 

Hogs,  438;  goats,  465,  474,  476;  sheep,  402. 

Prices  in  5  15. 


SECTION  12. — MANUFACTORIES. 


Unwillingness  to  labor,  72 ;  want  of  motive, 
71,  511,  540;  irregularity,  268. 

Cane:  Water  mills.— Puerta,  815;  Cune,118; 
Aurora,  509  ;  Arroyo-hondo,  524.  Sugar- 
making,  5(19,  511 ;  (products  of  cane  in  §  8) ; 
distilling,  448;  still,  448, /.  448 ;  distilleries, 
118,  509 ;  (excise,  5  18 ;  drinks,  §  7 ;  intemper- 
ance, $  26). 

Saw-mill :    Facatativa,   129  ;    Tequendama, 


286.  Sawing  by  hand,  38.  Chopping  out 
plank,  86. 

WHEAT-MILL  :  Bogota,  226, 269 ;  Boquia,  371. 

MANUFACTORY  of  cotton  cloth,  269 ;  paper, 
269 ;  combs,  526 ;  earthenware,  268  ;  glass,  269 ; 
iron,  239;  crude  quinine,  269;  sulphate  of 
quinine,  286 ;  gunpowder,  227. 

Painting  and  varnishing,  512.  Pasto  var- 
nish, 512 ;  turuing-lathe,  404. 


SECTION  13. — TRANSPORTATION  BY  WATER. 


STEAM-BOATS  :  Companies,  54.  Prices,  54. 
Ladies'  cabins,  55 ;  beds,  55 ;  captains,  54 ;  en- 
gineers, 57 ;  pilots,  57 ;  contramaestre,  55 ; 
bogas,  55;  servants,  58;  meals,  56.  Baggage 
allowed,  55;  inaccessible,  55.  Starting,  41; 
lying  by  at  night,  58,  71 ;  delays,  63 ;  aground, 
77 ;  passenger  left,  61. 

POLE-BOATS  :    Champan,  81,  /.  80 ;    bongo, 


39 ;  toldo,  81 ;  palanca,  89 ;  gancho,  39.  Can- 
alete,  39,  /.  70.  Patron,  89 ;  patrona,  81 ;  bo- 
gas,  39.  Poling,  89;  paddling  across,  85; 
passing  wasps'  nests,  90. 

BOGAS  :  Hard  work,  84 ;  shouting,  82 ;  fight- 
ing, 86;  praying,  82;  frolicking,  85;  delays, 
85 ;  negotiating,  78. 

Canal  de  la  Piua,  40 ;  Dique,  50. 


600 


APPENDIX. 


SECTION  14. — TRAVEL  AND  TRANSPORTATION  BY  LAND. 


ROADS — Road-making  :  North  Americans 
needed,  121 ;  road  wanted  to  the  Pacific.  525. 
Immense  ascents  and  descents,  255,  290;  un- 
necessary, 117,  122,  293,  345,  369,  361 :  road 
around  a  hill,  347 ;  crosses  at  the  top,  '239,  255, 
290:  national  road,  347,  373. 

Wheel-road*:  Too  good,  129,  353;  Western, 
129;  Northern,  202;  Southern,  272;  necessary 
for  saw-mills,  129 ;  carriages  in  Cartagena,  43 ; 
in  Bogota,  286;  Vueltas  de  la  Vireina,  137; 
carts  at  Barranquilla,  41 ;  in  the  Cauca,  487  ; 
allowed  with  one  bull  only  in  Bogota,  165. 

Mule-roads,  18 ;  opposed  by  cargueros,  202  ; 
quingo,  18,  361 ;  callejon,  214;  too  narrow,  320; 
contadero,  290  ;  atascadero,  345,  524 ;  almo- 
hadillado,  345  ;  resbaladero,  345  ;  derruiube, 
344. 

BRIDGES:  Few,  390;  solid,  162;  ruined  by 
earthquake,  1)5;  narrow,  313,  499;  of  brick, 
523;  stone,  355;  guadua,  417;  wood,  with 
thatched  roof,  871 ;  with  zinc  roof,  345. 

FERRIES,  94;  who  pays,  824;  delays,  316,320; 
passage  refused,  822  ;  fatigue  of  swimming, 
411 :  crossing  by  cargueros,  819 ;  Rio  Seco,  342. 

BEASTS  or  BURDEN  :  Comparison  of  horses, 
mules,  and  bulls,  202;  kicking,  152;  pay  of 
mules  and  peon,  45. 

Pack-saddle,  45;  rude  saddle,  35;  (for  sad- 
dles, &c.,  see  §  11) ;  encerado,  44;  petaca,  45; 


atillo,  45 ;  almofrez  or  vaca,  289,  /.  2S8 ;  loan 
of  saddle,  100;  hire  of  saddle,  117  ;  sillon, 
241,  /.  240 ;  galapago,  425 ;  loading  mules,  45 ; 
tercio,  45;  carga,  45;  sobrecarga,  51. 

Care  of  Beasts  on  a  Journey:  Fasting,  48, 
107 ;  destroncado,  52 ;  feeding  on  cane,  470 ;  on 
plantains,  372;  tethering,  458;  pasture,  342; 
grasses,  398 ;  fencing  up  the  road,  492 ;  water- 
ing, 123 ;  word  to  stop,  129. 

Riding:  Horsemanship,  388;  women  riding 
astride,  291  ;  discretion  allowed  to  mule,  102 ; 
sleeping  on  horseback,  291 ;  exhausted  horse, 
503 ;  driving  your  pony,  293 ;  catching  without 
lazo,  482. 

HUMAN  CARRIERS:  Cargueros,  93;  of  factory 
machinery,  94 ;  of  heavy  loads,  93 ;  of  babe, 
291,  /.  292;  of  men,  362,  /.  864;  falling  and 
slipping,  373 ;  riding  with  spurs !  371 ;  rich  sil- 
lero,  98 ;  silla,  365,  /.  364. 

TRAVELING  EXPENSES,  323;  mule-hire,  89, 
52,  117,  287,  314,  375 ;  meals  on  the  road,  49, 
121  ;  board  :  Barranquilla,  36  ;  Bogota,  137  ; 
Ibague,  325. 

Stopping '-places  :  Anapoima,  346  ;  Juntas, 
345;  Pescaderias,  101;  Botello,  127;  Bogota, 
137  ;  Pandi,  310  ;  Ibagu6,  325  ;  Barranquilla, 
36 ;  Honda,  97 ;  Arjona,  48 ;  Guaduas,  106. 

Distances  on  roads,  575 ;  legua,  47. 

Passports,  30. 


SECTION  15. — COMMERCE  AND  TRADE. 


HARBORS  ;  Santamarta,  42  ;  Sabanilla,  41  ; 
Cartagena,  42.  Wharves:  Sabanilla,  39;  Car- 
tagena, 42.  Pilot,  29 ;  (custom-houses  in  §  18). 

Indians  born  to  traffic,  259 ;  credit  system, 
385;  barter,  885;  (coins  in  §  18);  advertise- 
ments, 385 ;  disputed  demand,  337. 

STORES,  157;  tienda,  48,  144;  venta,  119; 
bodega,  92 ;  bodeguero,  92. 


MARKETS  :  Bogota,  175 ;  Facatativa,  128 ;  on 
Sunday  at  Guaduas,  111;  at  Fusagasuga,  296; 
at  Ibague,  325. 

PRICES  :  Agricultural  products,  487 ;  cacao, 
89;  cattle,  S98,  432;  sugar,  122;  wood,  226; 
(traveling  expenses  and  board  in  §  14). 

Weights  and  measures,  593;  not  used,  119, 


SECTION  16 — GOVERNMENT. 


TERRITORIAL  DIVISIONS,  37 ;  provincias,  37 ; 
cantones,  37 ;  abolished,  88 ;  distrito,  37 ;  par- 
roquia  (abolished),  37;  vice-parroquia  (abol- 
ished), 37;  aldea,  37;  territorio,  37. 

OFFICE  obligatory,  169,  334 ;  onerous,  255 ; 
salary  taken  from  jefes  politicos,  334 

CONSTITUTIONS  :  Of  Colombia  in  1821,  205; 
in  1880,  209 ;  of  New  Granada  in  1832,  250  ;  in 
1848,  257,  508 ;  in  1853,  257,  540.  Instability, 
268;  weakness  of  executive,  25S,  540;  vetoes, 
334;  joint  sessions,  258. 

PRESIDENTS  :  Bolivar,  204 ;  Joaquin  Mosque- 
ra,  209 ;  Santander,  250 ;  Marquez,  251 ;  Her- 
ran,  507,  593 ;  T.  C.  Mosquera,  509,  593 ;  Lo- 
pez, 17-',  593;  Obando,  172,  630;  next  presi- 
dent, 567;  military  attendants,  290 ;  palace,  172. 


USURPERS  of  supreme  power :  Urdaneta,  260 ; 
Melo,  557. 

VICE-PRESIDENTS'  Caicedo,  250;  Obaldia, 
559 ;  Mallarino,  522. 

GOBERNADORES  :  Julian  Ponce,  37 ;  Uricoe- 
chea,  333;  Justo  BriceCo,  847;  Pedro  Gutier- 
rez (Lee),  262 ;  Emigdio  Briceflo,  558 :  Carlos 
Gomez,  529;  Wenceslao  Carvajal,  530;  Anto- 
nio Mateus,  529,  598 ;  Miguel  Cabal,  507. 

JEFES  PoLiTicos :  Colonel  Acosta,  107 ;  Sam- 
per, the  poet  and  historian,  509. 

ALCALDE  of  Pandi,  310. 

Elections,  268,  449;  interference  of  priests, 
557 ;  of  Jesuits,  628 ;  sessions  of  Congress,  256 ; 
provincial  Legislature,  334;  barra,  257 ;  at  elec- 
tion of  J.  Mosquera,  522;  of  L6pez,  621. 


SECTION  17. — POLITICAL  PARTIES. 


For  names  of  presidents  and  other  magis- 
trates, see  {16. 

CONSERVADORES  :  Are  not  conservatives, 
G34;  Mariano  Ospina,  192, /.  193;  Julio  Arbo- 
leda,  563 ;  Mariano  Paris,  250  ;  Jose  Maria  Par- 
is, 214  ;  Sarda,  250  ;  Quevedo,  249  ;  Miguel 
Caldas,  526;  Dr.  Hoyos,  204;  Sociedad  del 
Nino-Dio«,  528 ;  Sociedad  Filotemica,  628 ;  op- 
pression of  the  poor,  528;  (for  Jesuits,  see  5  29). 

LIBEBALES:  Soto,  206;  Azuero,  206;  Diego 


Gomez,  303;  Cordova,  209;  Escuela  Republi- 
cana,  528 ;  perreristas,  527 ;  acts  of  violence. 
527. 

GOLGOTAS  :  Murillo,  561  ;  Galindo,  557 ;  So- 
ciedad Democratica,  528. 

REVOLUTIONS  :  Of  1830,  250 ;  of  1841,  253 ;  of 
1851,  530;  of  1854,  555;  premium  for,  251. 
Convention  of  Ocana,  207;  disruption  of  Co- 
lombia, 209 ;  outrages  in  the  Cauca,  527 ;  an- 
nexation desired,  630;  future  prospects,  540. 


SECTION  18. — TREASURY  DEPARTMENT. 


258. 


SECRETARY:  Joso  Maria  Plata,  253;  rooms, 


REVENUES  :  Small,  258 ;  debts,  258 ;  descen- 


not  on  property,  337 ;  progressive  taxes,  335 ; 
forced  contributions,  169  ;  no  poll-tax,  335  ; 
poor  pay  no  taxes,  335,  540.  Jmport  duties, 


tralizacion,  258;  direct  taxes,  258;  on  income,  |  258;   custom-house,  29,  33  ;   officers,  30,  33; 


APPENDIX. 


601 


smuggling,  33.  Transit  duties :  peaje,  50,  373 ; 
pasaje,  50,  94 ;  pontazgo,  99  ;  on  sirup,  347. 
Alcabala,  258;  stamp -tax,  253.  Monopolies: 
Salt,  98 ;  spirits,  119 ;  contract  annulled,  334 ; 
tobacco,  99 ;  provincial  tax  on,  335.  Tithes 
and  first-fruits,  259. 
MAILS,  259 :  Rates,  261 ;  printed  matter  free, 


261 ;  seeds  free,  261 ;  encomiendas,  260 :  horse 
sent  by  mail,  504.  Mail-carrier  on  foot,  260; 
mounted,  35.  Chasqui,  255.  Mail-boxes,  259 ; 
canoe,  260.  Mail  robberies,  260.  Foreign 
mails,  261.  Letter-list,  261. 

MINT,  161 ;  Manuel  Bestrepo,  161 ;  coins,  119 ; 
uniformity  of  coinage,  259. 


SECTION  19. — FOBKIQN  RELATIONS. 


MINISTERS  of  other  nations :  English,  166 ; 
French,  166;  Venezuelan,  168;  Legate  of  the 
Pope,  168.  Non-intercourse  with  Spain,  168. 

Naturalization,  168 ;  privileges  of  aliens, 
169 ;  refuge  with  legations,  559 ;  American  le- 
gation stormed,  562. 


SECTION  20. — WAR  AND  MABINE  DEPARTMENT. 


MILITIA  :  A  failure,  557. 

PERMANENT  FORCE:  Hostility  to,  556;  im- 
pressment, 308;  soldiers,  227, /.  228;  stature, 
227 ;  uniforms,  /.  228  ;  morals,  227 ;  camp  fol- 
lowers, 227 ;  washing  clothes,  227. 


Barracks,  198;  magazine,  227;  powder  man- 
ufactory, 227. 

Method  of  making  proclamations,  561. 
Gobernadores  act  as  quarter-masters,  883,348. 
Soldiers  as  guards  to  prisoners,  234,  348,  361. 


SECTION  21. — GOVERNMENT  DEPARTMENT — LAW. 


COURTS  :  Criminal  code,  508 ;  law  adminis- 
tered, 406 ;  compulsory  and  gratuitous  defense, 
407 ;  ignorant  judges,  169, 447 ;  jury,  407 ;  civil 
procedure,  409 ;  imprisonment  for  debt,  377. 
Signature,  326. 

PRISONS:  Number,  312;  trabajos  forzados, 
107 ;  casa  de  reclusion,  107 ;  preMio  at  Mesa, 
;j4S;  at  Toche,  860;  at  Bogota,  234;  presidario 
at  large,  359.  Provincial  prisons :  Barranquil- 
la,  38;  Bogota,  234;  Ibague.  333.  Cantonal: 
Fusagasuga,  299  ;  Tocaima,  343 ;  Mesa,  349 ; 


Cartago,  376;  Palmira,  513.  Parochial:  on 
Magdalena,  58;  Pandi,  312;  Libraida,  415. 

Stocks,  312 ;  feeding  prisoners,  812 ;  pardons, 
361 ;  surveillance,  348 ;  unmanageable  prison- 
er, 349.  Alcaide,  38. 

CAPITAL  PUNISHMENT:  Preparations,  159 ; 
execution,  164 ;  abolition  desired,  205. 

Crimes:  Murder  of  a  priest,  349;  corporal, 
557;  paramour,  108 ;  servant,  108;  Sucre,  252; 
Pinto  and  Morales,  529 ;  poisoning  at  the  mili- 
tary school,  267. 


SECTION  22. — GOVERNMENT  DEPARTMENT — HOSPITALS,  DISEASES,  &c. 


Hospicio,  162 ;  foundling  wheel,  162,  /.  163. 

HOSPITALS  :  Bogota,  281 ;  Mesa,  348 ;  Cali, 
517. 

PHYSICIANS:  Do  not  live  by  practice,  233, 
457 ;  surgery  rare,  510 ;  Dr.  Cheyne,  233 ;  Meri- 
zalde,  231 ;  Blagborne,  306 ;  Quintero,  457. 
Bleeding  by  barber,  384. 

Apothecaries,  233 ;  weights,  234,  485,  597. 

Diseases:  Insanity  rare,  233;  deaf  mutes, 
100,  322;  goitre,  116,  /.  320;  cured  by  iodine. 


438,  482  ;  jipatera,  76 ;  dysentery,  232 ;  con- 
sumption, 232;  leprosy,  519;  snake-bite  as  a 
remedy,  456 ;  carate,  151 ;  el  galico,  78,  233 ; 
ear-ache,  384;  worms,  445;  epilepsy,  445;  su- 
perficial ulcers,  348;  snake  bites,  582;  secret 
remedies,  455. 

Sick :  Neglected,  443,  445, 446 ;  value  of  med- 
ical assistance,  822,  446.  Medical  knowledge 
useful,  73.  Author's  sickness:  in  the  boat,  82 : 
Bogota,  146 ;  Cauca,  483. 


SECTION  23. — GOVERNMENT  DEPARTMENT — SCHOOLS  AND  LITERATURE. 


SCHOOLS  :  Sexes  separated  by  law,  32 :  Lan- 
casterian  system,  36.  Primary  boys'1  schools : 
Sabanilla,  32;  Barranquilla,  36;  Villeta,  128; 
Bogota,  268 ;  on  Sunday,  198  ;  Cerrito,  507 ; 
Palmira,  513 ;  Mesa,  350 ;  at  sunrise,  459. 
Primary  girls'  schools:  Guaduas,  106;  Bogota, 
268 ;  Ibague,  326  ;  Cartago,  376  ;  Cali,  518. 
Select  schools:  Small,  86;  Guaduas,  106;  Rol- 
danillo,  406 ;  domestic  education,  472. 

COLEGIOS:  Rosario,263;  La  Merced,1262;  Es- 
piritu  Santo,  158;  of  Santander's  widow,  162; 
Ibague,  328 ;  Cali,  518.  Laboratory  at  Bogota, 
268 ;  Professor  Lewy,  268;  Seminario  Conciliar, 
267 ;  Colegio  Militar,  663 ;  Professor  Bergeron, 
263;  Observatory,  64 ;  Caldas,  265;  Mutis,216. 

SCHOOL-BOOKS  and  apparatus :  Secured  to  the 
school,  518 ;  alphabet  wheel,  36.  Reading- 
books:  None  for  classes,  327;  unsuitable,  327, 
376,472;  Cartilla,  472 ;  Citolegia,  472.  Arith- 
metic: Strange  books,  327 ;  Palmira,  513;  Mesa, 
350.  Calculus, 518.  Logic,  303.  Geography: 
Ignorance  of,  327 ;  put  after  mathematics,  327. 
Praying  taught,  327 ;  catechisms,  327 ;  hymn- 
book,  518;  care  of  toes  in  school,  507. 

EDUCATION  :  Speculative,  51S  ;  ambitious, 
518;  degrees  abundant,  361;  LL.D.'s  turned 
traders,  514. 


LANGUAGES:  Latin,  517;  Bullions1  text- 
books, 517 ;  Greek,  268 ;  Hebrew,  268 ;  French. 
381;  English,  268.  Spanish  grammar :  Confu- 
sion of  B  and  V,  191,  368 ;  parsing,  518.  Span- 
ish language :  Like  Latin,  306 ;  poor  in  books, 
24 ;  pronunciation,  567  ;  words  in  -ado,  56 ;  ser 
and  estar,  148 ;  puns,  143. 

Books :  Semanario,  266 ;  Boussaingault's  pa- 
pers, 108;  General  Acosta's  works,  108;  Sam- 
per's Apuntamientos,  507;  Restrepo's  History, 
161 ;  Bentham,  208 ;  Colmena  Espanola,  404 ; 
Piquillo  Aliaga,  474 ;  Pope's  Essay  in  English, 
286 ;  French  novels,  881. 

LIBRARIES  :  National,  at  Bogota,  158 ;  Pine- 
da's pamphlets,  159 ;  of  Dr.  Merizalde,  231 ;  Se- 
nor  Guevara,  392 ;  Cabal,  509 ;  Mallarino,  522. 

Newspapers :  From  Paris,  315 ;  Voz  de  Toli- 
ma,  333.  Almanacs,  473. 

POETRY  :  Versification  easy,  177.  Josefa 
Acevedo  de  Gomez,  303 ;  Jose  Maria  Samper, 
509 ;  Prospero  Pereira  (Gamba),  839. 

TRADITIONS  :  Bochica,  126  ;  Anjel  Lei,  339 ; 
hidden  treasures,  248,  350, 443, 500,  539;  ghosts 
rare,  340 ;  puerile  tales,  369. 

Chorographic  commission,  173 ;  Colonel  Co- 
dazzi,  172;  Jose  Maria  Triana,  204;  Manuel 
Ancisar,  173. 


602 


APPENDIX. 


SECTION  24. — FINE  ARTS. 


PAINTERS:  Vasquez,  192;  Santibanas,  376. 

PICTURES:  Sewing  cloth  on,  112;  fastening 
on  jewelry,  112 ;  (for  saints  in  churches,  Bee  § 
28);  crucifixion  at  San  Agustin,  197;  Virgin 
in  Santo  Domingo  (ascribed  in  the  text  to  Vas- 
quez, but  probably  not  his),  192 ;  horse  in  the 
Cathedral,  195 ;  marriage  of  Mary,  198 ;  age  of 
Joseph,  198 ;  in  San  Pedro,  Call,  516. 

Statue  of  Bolivar,  158. 


Music :  Hired  in  the  Cathedral,  550 ;  the 
Lamentations,  550 ;  the  Miserere,  550 ;  in  girls' 
school,  Call,  518 ;  of  nuns  of  Santa  Ines,  199 ; 
priest  in  Cali,  516.  Metres  of  hymns,  518. 
Performances  at  Salitre,  124. 

MUSICAL  INSTRUMENTS  :  Guitar,  475 ;  bando- 
la,  124, /.  441;  tiple,  124;  alfandoque,  124, /. 
441 ;  drum,  443 ;  tauiborine,  440,  /.  441.  (Or- 
gans in  J  28.) 


SECTION  25. — AMUSEMENTS,  HABITS,  AND  SOCIAL  LIFE. 

DANCING  :  At  Calamar,  53 ;  near  Bogota,  201 ;  26) ;  cock-fighting,  144  ;  tying  a  game-cock, 
in  the  Cathedral,  196;  at  Fusagasuga,  295;  175;  marbles,  474;  masquerades,  305;  April- 
Cartago,  377 ;  La  Paila,  439,  /.  441 ;  on  Saint  I  fools,  804. 

Peter's  Day,  413;  by  priests,  413;  on  Sabbath,  j      SMOKING:   Bringing  fire,  170,   412;   ladies 
478 ;  by  priests  on  Sabbath,  296,  478 ;  in  the    smoking,  171 ;  secretly,  171 ;  smoking  in  bed, 


daytime,  201,  450;  till  morning,  479;  when 
sick,  384;  when  just  out  of  jail,  377. 

DANCES  :  Bambuco,  440,  /.  441 ;  torbellino, 
443 ;  bunde,  479 ;  waltz,  440 ;  queer  dance,  53 ; 
continuous  waltz,  201 ;  masquerade  ball,  305. 

QUEER  COUPLES  :  Children,  440 ;  tall  man 
and  little  girl,  443;  boy  and  old  woman,  478; 
grim  old  negro  and  pretty  young  girl,  479 ;  the 
author  challenged  to  dance!  479.  Carrying 
girls  home  on  horseback,  480. 

THEATRE:  Bogota,  160;  in  open  air  at  Carta- 
ge, 877. 

Hunting,  490.     Cooking  for  dogs,  496. 

Fishing :  At  Honda,  98,  101. 

SWIMMING:  At  Honda,  99;  Bogota,  223,  226; 
Ubaque,  249 ;  Cartago,  376 ;  El  Credo,  399 ;  Pai- 
la, 451 ;  Cali,  523.  Swimmers  of  the  first  re- 
spectability, 481.  Swimming  the  Cauca,411. 
Horning  ablutions,  56,  469;  towels,  56,  338;  a 
bath-vat,  538. 

BULL-FEASTS  :  Forbidden  in  Bogota,  296 ;  at 
Fusagasuga,  299, /.  298;  Paila,  453. 

Rope-dancing,  404;  horse-racing,  453;  hen- 
race,  452  ;  duck-pulling,  414 ;  beheading  the 
cock,  414;  card-playing,  124;  (gambling  in  § 


316, 341 ;  fire  in  the  mouth,  171 ;  cigarillos,  171 ; 
restraint  on  servants  and  soldiers,  146,  341; 
not  allowed  in  church,  412 ;  spitting,  146. 

CONVERSATIONAL  powers,  171,  381  ;  ladies 
generally  retiring,  350 ;  secluded,  171 ;  the  Cau- 
cana,  395 ;  tertulia  at  Mesa,  350 ;  peasant  chil- 
dren, 446  ;  ui lam i able,  411 ;  inquisitivcness, 
319. 

Celebration  of  7th  of  March :  Bogota,  201 ; 
Cali,  520 ;  (other  celebrations  in  §  30) ;  huzzas, 
413;  riot,  413. 

INTRODUCTIONS  rare,  412 ;  they  converse 
without,  502;  salutations,  291;  kissing,  116; 
kissing  the  hand,  537 ;  embracing,  116,  382;  on 
horseback,  511 ;  embracing  servants,  354,  382; 
house  at  your  disposition,  81. 

REFRESHMENTS  :  Cigars,  170,  412  ;  spirits, 
412 ;  cake  to  ladies  only,  412 ;  dulce,  502. 

HOSPITALITY  :  Limited  at  Bogota,  171 ;  abus- 
ed, 108 ;  at  Ibague,  324 ;  at  a  peasant's,  504 ; 
peasant  strangers,  350 ;  dinner  on  Saint  Peter's 
day,  413 ;  at  the  palace,  172 ;  lunch  of  fish  in  a 
hut,  448 ;  invitation  and  no  dinner,  443 ;  choc- 
olate at  the  hermit's,  534;  kindness,  524,  541; 
no  homes  without  hearths,  213. 


SECTION  26 — MORALS. 


Comparative  morality  of  New  Granada,  542. 

SABBATH,  478.  Sunday  markets:  Guaduas, 
111 ;  Fusagasuga,  296 ;  approved  by  Archbish- 
op Mosquera,  111.  Hunting,  490;  theatre,  160; 
balls,  296,  478 ;  cock-fighting,  828 ;  rope-danc- 
ing, 404 ;  sports  permitted,  478. 

FILIAL  DUTIES  :  Irreverence,  406 ;  home,  213 ; 
foundling  hospital,  162,  /.  163. 

LIFE:  Value  of,  342,  376 ;  (murders  in  §  21) ; 
neglect  of  sick,  443,  445,  446 ;  quarreling,  519 ; 
rare,  71 ;  attack  on  Mr.  Haldane,  118. 

INTEMPERANCE  :  Not  disgraceful,  454 ;  rare, 
144;  quiet,  454;  noisy  exception,  343 ;  terms  for 
drunken,  458;  drinking  at  a  ball,  479;  (for 
drinks,  see  5  7 ;  social  life  in  §  25). 

CHASTITY  :  Spanish  race  make  good  hus- 
bands, 380 ;  passions  not  strong,  23 ;  seclusion 
of  females,  171 ;  license  of  language,  369 ;  un- 
chastity  at  Ocafla,  71 ;  not  very  disgraceful,  66, 
820,  401 ;  in  men  not  at  all  so,  295,  396 ;  once 


treated  seriously,  482;  in  the  palace,  209;  a 
servant,  151:  Santander,  295;  Haldane's  tenant, 
117 ;  the  wily  penitent,  245;  (for  unchastity  of 
priests,  see  §  29) ;  nuns  reputable,  199;  camp  fol- 
lowers, 146 ;  guarichas,  174 

TIIEFT,  375 ;  string-stealing,  45 ;  towels,  338, 
875;  fences,  131;  iron  fence,  163;  a  robber,  513; 
traveling  armed,  513 ;  mail  robberies  rare,  260. 
Slavery  limited,  205 ;  abolished,  527 ;  effects  in 
Choco,  381. 

TENURE  or  PROPERTY  :  Undivided,  531  ; 
mortmain,  418 ;  capellanias,  4U> ;  entail ;  418 ; 
redeeming  annual  charges,  419  ;  succession 
among  Indians,  27. 

GAMBLING  :  Not  disgraceful,  306 ;  loteria, 
806 ;  cachimona,  377 ;  (for  plays,  see  J  25).  Beg- 
ging, 333,  348,  524 ;  generosity,  541. 

Veracity :  Granadan  view  of,  483 ;  Pedro  the 
Liar,  389 ;  the  Vanilla  planter,  893 ;  lying  from 
small  motive,  483 ;  the  dead  voter,  507. 


SECTION  27. — RELIGION — DOGMAS. 


Church  orthodox  in  the  main,  182 ;  salvation 
by  works,  ISO.  Purgatory,  182 ;  time  in,  546. 
Forgiveness  of  sin,  421. 


VIRGIN  :  Advocacioneg,  186  ;  perpetual  vir- 
ginity, 182;  omnipresence,  495;  miraculous 
birth  of  Christ,  182. 


SECTION  28. — RELIGION — MATERIAL  OBJECTS. 

CHURCHES:   Numerous,  185;  not  beautiful,  i  162;  Moncerrate,  215;  Guadalupe,  222;  Egip- 
186 ;  old,  185 ;  in  building,  457,  505 ;  begun  and    to,  224 ;  La  Pefla,  224 ;  Libraida,  412 ;  Cerrito, 
abandoned,  64, 222, 581.    Cathedral,  H>4,  /.  150 ;    /.  5;)C ;  Roldanillo,  406 ;  Cali,  516. 
church  at  Barranquilla,  88;    Guaduas,  112;        MONASTERIES  :    Of  San   Francisco,   Bogota, 
Villeta,  123  ;   Las  Nieves,  186;   HumUladero,  1 183;  at  Cali,  516;  La  Tercera,  188;  Santo  Do- 


APPENDIX. 


603 


mingo,  191;  San  Agustin,  196.    Nunneries:  La 
Concepcion,  198 ;  Santa  Ines,  199.  Emiitas,  214. 

PAWTH  f\v  A  PTrrmmT  •   Sanristia.  112 ;   carnllft. 


choir,  194 ;  music  gallery,  187. 

IMPLEMENTS:  Wafer,  113;  custodia,  187; 
chalice,  113;  patena,  113;  ornamentos,  112; 
hisopo,  192 ;  cilicio,  189 ;  disciplina,  189 ;  par- 
amentos,  112;  mirrors,  189 ;  monumentos,  550; 
pesebre,  467. 

IMAGES:  Manufacture,  516;  in  their  shirts, 
187;  domestic  saints,  139;  Nino-Dios,  405 ;  San 
Jorje,  375 ;  advocaciones  of  the  Virgin,  186 ;  Do- 
lores, 139 ;  Soledad,  553.  Miraculous  Images : 
Chiquinquira,  186 ;  La  Pefla,  224 ;  Moncerrate, 
217 ;  Guadalupe,  222 ;  Queremal,  517 ;  Las  La- 
jas,  517 ;  votive  offerings,  224,  /.  225. 

PICTURES  :  San  Cristoval,  226 ;  Saint  Francis 
preaching  to  the  fishes,  190;  choice  of  Saint 
Dominic,  191 ;  ass  kneeling  to  the  hostia,  189 ; 


air  full  of  devils,  191 ;  Virgin  in  dormitory  of 
monks,  191 ;  devil  putting  out  the  lights,  191 ; 
devils  tossing  a  saint,  233 ;  devil  and  saint 
hanging  a  man,  233 ;  birth  of  Santa  In6s,  200 ; 
Abelard  and  Heloise,  233 ;  lithographs  wanted, 
255 ;  sewing  cloth  and  jewels  to  pictures,  112 ; 
(pictures  as  works  of  art  in  §  24). 

ORGANS,  187  ;  Barranquilla,  39 ;  Roldanillo, 
406.  Bells,  186;  clocks,  108, 185;  rattle,  551; 
incense,  114;  candle-poles,  114;  candles,  365; 
rockets,  113,  450 ;  guns,  520 ;  toys,  467. 

CEMETERIES  :  Plan,  229  ;  chapel,  60  ;  b6ve- 
das,  60 ;  bones  disturbed,  229 ;  inscriptions,  229 ; 
expectant  b6veda,  114 ;  coffins,  115 ;  at  Ibagu6, 
329,  /.  329  ;  public  coffins,  115 ;  used  as  punish- 
ment, 107;  rude  biers,  115,  444;  habit  of  Saint 
Francis,  516. 

CEMETERY  at  Mompos,  60  ;  Guaduas,  114 ; 
Bogota,  228 ;  English  cemetery,  163  ;  Potters' 
Field,  230;  for  suicides,  etc.,  £81;  Pandi,  312; 
Ibaguo,  329  ;  Paila,  444 ;  mausoleum  near  Pie- 
dras,  841 ;  Indian  graves,  588 ;  (sickness  in  §  22 ; 
death  and  funerals  in  §  30). 


SECTION  29. — RELIGION — PERSONS. 


Priesthood  a  monopoly,  23;  priests  worse 
than  in  Protestant  countries,  23 ;  conservatives, 
8S ;  a  civil  officer  under  the  alcalde,  825 ;  rare- 
ly preaches,  552,  555 ;  a  good  preacher,  531. 

DEKSS  of  priests,  192;  satacuello,  G5;  tonsure, 
C6 ;  habits  of  the  Jesuits,  193,  /.  193. 

UNCIIASTITY  of  priests,  67 ;  apology  for,  66 ; 
marriage  would  be  disreputable,  417  ;  marriage 
prevented,  67;  seducer  of  young  girls,  67; 
Bishop  of  Popayan,  25;  priest  at  Banco,  65; 
Choachi,  245 ;  Vijes,  532. 

DISORDERLY  Priests :  Tibacui,  301 ;  Pandi, 
310.  Priest  dancing,  413;  on  Sabbath,  478; 
ensign  of  a  Sabbath  ball,  296;  preparing  for  the 


Sabbath,  305;  at  cock-fight  on  Sunday,  328; 
treating  with  punch,  415;  interfere  with  poli- 
tics, 557. 

Canonigos,  194 ;  Saavedra,  552. 

MONKS  worse  than  the  seculars,  67;  Francis- 
cans, 190  ;  Italian  image-maker,  516 ;  Agustin- 
ians,  198;  Hospitallers,  232;  number  of  monks 
and  nuns,  199. 

JESUITS  :  Dress  of,  /.193 ;  expelled,  232,  508 ; 
recalled,  508 ;  interfered  with  politics,  528 ;  re- 
expelled,  628. 

NUNS,  199 ;  dowry  for  admission,  171. 

La  Tercera,  188 ;  Cofradia,  189 ;  beatas,  193  ; 
minoristas,  194 ;  hermit,  532. 


SECTION  80. — RELIGION — CEREMONIES. 


Intention  necessary,  180,  305. 

BAPTISM,  476  ;  lay,  483 ;  completed,  476 ;  nec- 
essary to  salvation,  180. 

NAMES  :  Theory  of,  261 ;  names  of  the  Vir- 
gin, 186 ;  of  Jesus,  145 ;  specimen  of  masculine 
names,  449 ;  convenient  name  needed,  402 ;  let- 
ter lists,  261 ;  surnames,  261 ;  tocayos,  106. 

GOD-PARENTS  :  Relationships  by  baptism, 
181 ;  a  bar  to  marriage,  181 ;  a  screen  for  sin, 
181 ;  terms  assumed  from  friendship,  181. 

CONFIRMATION,  181. 

EUCHARIST  :  Communion,  182  ;  rare,  184  ; 
poisoning  with  wafer,  188;  first  communion,  181. 

MASS:  Said  fasting,  182 ;  early,  99 ^fasting 
for  mass,  305  ;  said  or  sung,  112 ;  at  mfdnight, 
296.  Ceremonies,  112;  for  the  dead,  520;  sol- 
diers at  mass,  114,  520 ;  triple  mass,  547 ;  pros- 
tration at  the  altar,  552,  554 ;  Gloria  mass,  554. 

PENANCE  :  Confession  rare,  184 ;  fasts.  514 ; 
neglected,  184 ;  ejercicios  at  La  Tercera,  189 ; 
scourging,  189 ;  Lent,  544. 

EXTREME  UNCTION.  329  ;  cockroach  story, 
514. 

ORDERS  :  (for  priests,  see  J  29). 

MATRIMONY  :  Ceremonies,  477 ;  fee,  118 ;  civil 
marriage,  352. 

PRAYING  :  Rosary,  183 ;  crown,  183 ;  trisagio, 
518;  crossing  one's  self,  184;  family  prayer  on 
Sabbath,  183 ;  omitted,  183 ;  men  avoid,  183  ; 
service  at  meals,  472.  Ceremonies  not  impos- 
ing, 544 ;  effect  on  the  mind,  555. 

CHURCH-WORSHIP  :  Not  splendid,  184;  dress 
for,  184;  hats  not  allowed,  186;  nor  zamarros 


or  cigars,  412 ;  manner  of  sitting,  188.  Sermons 
rare,  555 ;  Saavedra' s,  552 ;  a  good  preacher  but 
bad  liver,  531. 

Music:  Always  bad,  187;  no  tunes  nor  me- 
tres, 518;  music  of  nuns,  199;  a  priest  that 
could  sing,  516 ;  cathedral  service,  194. 

PROCESSIONS  :  In  church,  197 ;  ass  in  church, 
545 ;  prohibition  in  streets  proposed,  296 ;  Prot- 
estants uncover,  546 ;  or  are  insulted,  545.  Fu- 
sagasuga,  296;  Paila,  444;  Cali,  517;  in  Holy 
Week,  545. 

HOLY  WEEK  Ceremonies :  La  resefla,  547 ; 
adoring  the  cross,  552 ;  washing  feet,  551 ;  bells 
silent,  551 ;  blessing  palm  leaves,  545;  paschal 
candle,  554 ;  fire,  oil,  and  water,  554 ;  curtain- 
rending,  548,  554;  speaking  through  a  tube, 
549;  lamentations,  550;  tinieblas,  550  ;  mise- 
rere, 550;  monumentos,  550 ;  descent  from  the 
cross,  553;  resurrection,  554.  Saint  Veronica's 
handkerchief,  549.  Winding-sheet  of  Christ, 
553  ;  piece  of  the  cross,  550. 

FESTIVALS:  Movable,  544;  Christmas,  467; 
Corpus,  544;  Lent,  544;  Ash-Wednesday,  544; 
Saint  Peter's  Day,  413 ;  Saint  John's  Day,  450; 
Innocents'  Day,  304 ;  Palm-Sunday,  544 ;  Mon- 
day in  Holy  Week,  546 ;  Tuesday,  547 ;  Wednes- 
day, 548;  Thursday,  550;  Good-Friday,  552; 
Holy  Saturday,  554 ;  Paschal  Sunday,  554 

FUNERALS  :  Rejoicing  at  the  death  of  a  baby, 
322,  446  ;  dead  baby  a  term  of  depreciation, 
206 ;  annual  funeral  rites,  229  ;  burial  at  Bogo- 
ta, 229 ;  Paila,  444 ;  Cali,  519 ;  (for  cemeteries, 
etc.,  see  §  28). 


JTION  31. — ANIMALS:  CLASSIFICATION  OP  CUVIER. 
Mammalia ;  rare,  389.  trees,  76 ;  confined  and  spiteful,  100 ;  males 

Homo  (see  §  2).  only  kept,  455. 


Quadrumana  ;  monos  and  micos,  monkeys:  in 


Cheiroptera ;  murcielagos,  bats,  140,  303. 


604 


APPENDIX. 


Fells  domestica ;  gate,  eat,  455. 

F.  concolor :  leon,  puma,  cougar,  catamount, 

painter,  panther,  460. 
F.  onca;  tigre,  jaguar,  460. 
Ursus  Americanus?  oso.  bear,  367. 
Cavia  Cobaia ;  curi,  Guinea-pig,  447. 
Dasyprocta   Acuschy ;    guatin,   guardatinaja, 

447. 

Acheus  AI ;  perico  lijero,  sloth,  388. 
Dasypus  sp. ;  armadillo,  142. 
Elephas  primigenius ;  fossil  elephant,  273. 
Sus  scropha ;  marrano,  cochino,  hog,  438. 
Tapirus  sp. ;  danta,  tapir,  493. 
Equus  (in  §  11). 

Cervus  Peronei ;  ciervo,  deer,  496. 
Capra  Hircus;  chibo,  cabra,  f/»at,  465,  474. 
Ovis  Aries ;  oveja,  sheep,  402,  488. 
Bos  Taurus  (see  }  11). 
Manatus  Americanus;  manati,  46. 
Vultur  gryphus ;  condor,  buitre,  495. 
V.  Papa ;  rei  de  los  gallinazos,  king  of  vultures, 

230. 

V.  Jota;  gallinazo,  chulo,  230. 
1 1  ir  11  ndii  rufa,  var.  tijereto,  524. 
Steatornis  Caripensis ;  guacharo,  264,  812. 
Crotophaga  Piririgua ;  garrapatero,  525. 
Ramphactes  sp. ;  Dios  te  v<'-.  toucan,  359. 
Psittacussp. ;  lore,  perico,pamrf,parogw«£,4471 

510. 

Ara  glaucus;  guacamayo,  macaw,  127. 
Ourax  Alector ;  pauji,  127. 
Penelope  sp. ;  par  a,  495. 
Meleagris  Gallopavo ;  pisco,  pavo  real,  turkey, 

359. 

Phasianus  gallus  (in  {  8,  9,  25). 
Ardea  alba ;  garza,  crane,  136. 


Scopus  sp. ;  cocli,  525. 

Testudo  serpentaria?  tortuga,  turtle,  487. 

Emys  sp. ;  galapago,  terrapin,  487. 

Crocodilus;  caiman,  alMgator,  71. 

Laeertinidsc ;  legartos,  lizards,  85;  Salaman- 
queja,  35. 

Ophidia  ;  culebras,  serpientcs,  snakes  :  rare. 
275,  322 ;  venomous,  492,  495 ;  t.reading  on 
fangs,  499 ;  protection  of  boots  532 ;  reme- 
dies for  bites,  -155 ;  snake  stories,  456,  499 ; 
equis,  498. 

Batrachia;  rana,  frog,  49. 

Pisces ;  pescado,  jUsh,  98,  136. 

Kaius  sp. ;  raya,  ray,  341. 

Bulimus  oblongus;  caracol,  snail,  304 

Mycetopus  siliquoides,  377. 

Anodonta  Holtonis,*  877. 

Lumbricus  sp. ;  earth-worm,  224. 

Elater  noctiluca ;  cocuyo,  110. 

Gryllus  sp. ;  chillador,  cricket,  474. 

Cimex  lectularius;  cbinche,  bug,  49. 

C.  sp. ;  petacon,  49. 

Neuroptera ;  hormigas,  ants :  arrieros,  Banco. 
64;  Tulua,  65;  Bolivia,  538;  finding  their 
way,  65.  Venomous  ants,  437,  456. 

Tespa  sp. ;  avispa,  wasp,  90,  102. 

Culex  sp. ;  mosquito,  gnat,  69 ;  zancudo,  mitf- 
quito,  72,  373 ;  smoking  them,  475. 

Pulex;  pulga,/«o,  331,  387;  in  church,  554. 

P.  penetrans :  nigua,  jigger,  chigoe,  330 ;  in 
church,  445. 

Acarus  sp. ;  garrapata,  tick,  481. 

Coccus  cacti ;  cochinilla,  cochineal,  48S. 

Infusoria ;  tiza,  388. 

Animal-plant  ?  456. 


SECTION  82. — PLANTS:  ENDUCIIEK'S  CLASSIFICATION. 


Conferva,  360. 

Equisetum,  370. 

Filices;  helechos,./mw,  285 ;  palos-bobos,  tree- 
ferns,  289,  /.  285 ;  fence  of  tree-ferns,  124 ; 
pillars,  224. 

Lygodium  hirsutum,  69. 

Lycopodium  sp.,  255. 

Dichromena  ciliata,  92. 

Oryza  saliva ;  arroz,  rice,  500. 

Zea  Mays;  mais,  maize,  487. 

Gynerium  sp. ;  cana-brava,  71. 

Chusquea  scandens ;  chusque,  217. 

Guadua  latifnlia;  guadua,  109;  flower,  416; 
cultivated,  535. 

Triticum  sp. ;  trigo,  wheat,  133,  399. 

Saccharum  omcinale ;  cafta  dulce,  sugar-cane, 
118,  487,  635. 

Hydrocleis,  438. 

Limnocharis  marginata,  433. 

Sagittaria  sp.,  437. 

Pontederia  azurea,  438,  514. 

Typha  sp. ;  cat-tail  flag,  30. 

Alstrcemeria  sp.,  180. 

Dioscorea  sp. ;  name,  yam,  151. 

Amaryllis,  96. 

Agave  sp. ;  cabuya  de  Mejico,  495. 

Fourcroya  gigantea ;  fique,  cabuya,  magu6, 246. 

Bromelia  Karatas ;  pinuela,  103. 

Pitcairnia,  439. 

Tillandsia  sp. ;  salvaje,  Spanish  moss,  53,  439. 

Cattleya  sp. ;  azucena,  416. 

Odontoglossum,  220. 

Sobralia,  416. 

Vanilla  sp. ;  vainilla,  vanilla,  393. 

Maranta  sp. ;  sagu,  arrow-root,  146. 

I  teliconia  sp.  ;  lengua  de  vaca,  68. 

H.  Bihai ;  bihao,  374. 

('anna  Indica ;  achira,  Indian  shot,  143. 

Musa  paradisaica;  platano  barton,  plantain,  87. 

M.  sapientium ;  guineo,  banana,  88. 

M.  regia ;  dominico,  88. 


Ami-Is.  34 

Pistia  Strattotes,  438. 

Dieffenbachia  sp. ;  runcho,  438. 

Arum  esculentum  ?  rascadera,  538. 

Carludovica  palmata ;  iraca,  nacuma,  jipijapa. 

63,400. 
Phytelephas  macrocarpa  ;   cabeza  de  negro. 

vegetable  ivory,  69,  438,  /.  70. 
Attalea  amygdalina;  almendron,  400. 
Ceroxylon  andicola;  palma  de  cera,  wax-palm. 

365,494. 

Phoenix  dactylifera;  ddtile,  date,  304 
Cocos  nucifera ;  coco,  cocoa-palm,  72,  410,  501 : 

Corozo,  474;  Palmiche,  cabbage-palm,  149. 
Coniferse ;  not  seen,  243. 
Cecropia  pcltata ;  guarumo,  87. 
Artocarpus  inciea ;  arbol  de  pan,  bread-fruit. 

439. 

Morus  tinctoria ;  mpro,  fustic,  53. 
Salix  sp. ;  sauce,  willow,  201. 
Chenopodium  anthelminticum ;  paica,  worm- 
seed,  445. 

Polygonate ;  bellisima,  62. 
Nyctaginates  rare,  85. 
Persea  gratissima  ;   aguacate,  cura,  alligator 

pear,  avocado  pear,  410. 
Aristolochia  reticulata,  585. 
A.  ringens ;  zaragoza,  535. 
A.  anguicida;  guaco,  457. 
Mikania  guaco  ;  guaco,  457. 
Espeletia  Frailexon;  frailejon,  216. 
Mutisia,  216. 

Achyrophorus  sessiliflorus;  achicoria,  12f>. 
Coffea  Arabica ;  cafe,  coffee,  558. 
Calycophyllum  coccineum,  819. 
Cinchona  sp. ;  quina,  bark,  125,  286,  308. 


*  Anodonta  Holtonis,  Lfa :  ined.  Testa  Isevi,  oblonga. 
inflata.  ralde  inaequilaterali,  e  natibus  lineatis;   valvulif 

broso-olivacea,  striata  ;  margarita  c<i'nilea  et  iridescent*. 
Hab. — In  Btagno  Carthaginis  Novcgranitensium. 


APPENDIX. 


605 


Lantana,  94. 

Gentiana,  218. 

Mentha  piperita;   yerba-buena,  peppermint, 

368. 

Batatas  edulis;  batatas,  sweet  potato,  471. 
Nicotiana  Tabacum ;  tabaco,  tobacco,  4SS. 
Datura  arborea  ;  borrachero,  131. 
D.  sanguinea,  131. 

Solanuin  Lycopersicum ;  tomate,  tomato,  485. 
Aragoa  cupressina,  216. 
A.  abietina,  255. 
A.  juniperina,  216. 
Crescentia  cujete ;  totumo,  74. 
Achras  Sapota  ;  nispero,  314. 
Vaccinium,  212. 

Tbibaudia;  uva  cimarrona,  216. 
T.  Quereme;  quereme,  517. 
Befaria  resinosa ;  pega-pega,  203. 
Anethum  Foeniculum ;  anis,  fennel,  5(i. 
Couium  sp.  ;  arracacha,  150. 
Vitis  vinifera ;  parra,  grape,  346. 
Loranthus,  224. 
L.  Mutisii,  240,  551. 
Anoiiu  Cherimolia;  chirimoya,  502. 
A.  iiiuricut a ;  guanabana,  sour  sop,  502. 
A.  squamosa;  anon,  502. 
Drymis  Winteri ;  canelo,  Winter' 8-bark,  23S. 
Sedum  bicolor,  218. 
Berberis  glauca,  254. 
Bocconia  frutescens,  126. 
Capparidate  tree,  525. 
Nymphsea,  437. 

Bixa  Orellana ;  achiote,  bija,  arnatto,  141. 
Passiflora  (tree!),  416. 
P.  quadrangularis ;  badea,  34,  130. 
P.  ligularis ;  curuba  en  Cauca,  ISO ;  granadillo, 

130. 

Screen  of  Passiflora,  501. 
Tacsonia  speciosa ;  curuba  de  Bogota,  130. 
Loasa,  242. 

Carica  Papaya ;  papaya,  papaw,  31. 
Cucurbita  sp. ;  calabaza,  calabash,  74. 
Begonia  sp. ;  borla  de  San  Pedro,  220. 
Cereus  grandiflorus,  23. 
C.  Pitajaya;  pitahaya,  525. 
Melocactus  or  Mammillaria,  342. 
Rhipsalis ;  disciplina,  489. 
Opuntia;  tuna,  prickly  pear,  301. 
Pereskia,  503. 

Portulaca  oleracea ;  verdolaga,  purselane,  446. 
Dianthus  Caryophyllus,  pink,  538. 
Gossypium  sp. ;  algodon,  cotton,  289. 
Sida,  escoba,  474. 

Bombax  Ceiba ;  ceiba,  cotton-tree,  506. 
Matisia  sp. ;  zapote,  390. 


Helicteres,  94. 

Theobroma  Cacao ;  cacao,  cocoa,  chocolate,  88 ; 
(indigenous),  515. 

T.  arborescens ;  madrono,  304. 

Guazuma  tomentosa ;  guazimo,  439. 

Vallea  stipularis,  203. 

Citrus  Aurantium ;  naranja,  orange,  72. 

C.  vulgaris ;  naranja  agria,  sour  orange,  121. 

C.  Limetta;  lima,  lime,  438. 

C.  Limetta  var.  ;  limon  dulce,  sweet  lime,  74. 

Coriaria,  226. 

Sapindus  saponaria;  cliambimbe,  soap-berry, 
469. 

Batis  maritima,  46. 

Euphorbia  cotinifolia ;  manzanillo,  310. 

Dalechampia,  319. 

Styloceras  laurifolium,  220. 

Hura  crepitans ;  apacua,  sandbox-tree,  47. 

Hippomane  Mancinella ;  manzanillo,  manchi- 
neel,  32. 

Cnidoscolus  stimulosa,  33. 

Curcas  purgans ;  purga  de  fraile,  532. 

Manihot  utilissima ;  yuca,  62,  322,  400. 

Phyllanthus,  164. 

Mangifera  Indica ;  mango,  mango,  304. 

Anacardium ;  caracoli,  cashew,  61. 

Simaba  Cedron ;  cedron,  457. 

Guaiacum  sp. ;  guayacan,  289. 

Oxalis  tuberosa;  oca,  150. 

Tropseolum  majus ;  pajarito,  nasturtian,  130. 

Bucida  capitata ;  granadillo,  285. 

Laguncularia  racemosa,  31. 

Rhizophora  Mangle ;  mangle,  mangrove,  32. 

Fuchsia,  126,  368. 

Codazzia  rosea,  242. 

Psidium  pomiferum ;  guayaba,  guava,  72. 

Jambosa  vulgaris ;  pomarosa,  304. 

Lecythis,  536. 

Fragaria  vesca ;  fresa,  strawberry,  149,  539. 

Alchemilla  nivalis,  255. 

Cerasus  Capollin ;  cerezo,  cherry,  201. 

Chrysobalanus  Icaco ;  hicaco,  78. 

Lupinus,  218. 

Indigofera  tinctoria ;  anil,  indigo,  488. 

Cicer  Arietinum ;  garbanzo,  chick-pea,  150. 

Pisum  sativum ;  alverja,  pea,  143. 

Ervum  Lens;  lenteja,  lentil,  150. 

Vicia  Faba ;  haba,  Windsor  bean,  150. 

Mucuna  sp. ;  pica-pica,  cowhage,  302. 

Erythinia  sp. ;  chocho,  302. 

Phaseolus  vulgaris ;  frisol, frijol, judia,  Yankee- 
bean,  150. 

Abrus  precatorius,  bead-pea,  84. 

Guilandina  Bonduc,  burning-bean,  46. 


THE   END. 


8  1  3 


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